The Missing Piece
by coolkitten12
Summary: After Camp Rock ended Mitchie was forced to move to England. An accident leaves her with amnesia, unable to remember any of her American life, including her summer at camp. What happens when she goes backstage at a C3 concert and re-meets THE Shane Grey?
1. Guess What

**AN: Here's my new story, I hope you guys like it. Mitchie was forced to move to England when her mother got offered a new job at the end of Camp Rock. After an accident Mitchie ends up with amnesia, forgetting almost everything about her American life, including her summer at Camp Rock. What happens when she and Shane meet again after a Connect 3 concert? Find out in 'The Missing Piece'.**

**Disclaimer: I'm only putting it in this chapter: I don't own anything, except the basic idea and some of my own characters. **

**Chapter 1: Guess what!**

"Mitchie, Mitchie, Mitchie!" Tia exclaimed as she ran down the corridor and into their usual room. Mitchie glanced up, chuckling as she noticed just how flustered her friend looked.

"Where's the fire?" She asked as Tia took a seat beside her, an excited grin plastered on her face.

"You'll never guess what I have." Tia said, gaining Mitchie's full attention.

"The new T.J Tyler album?" Mitchie suggested. They'd both pre-ordered the album and it was due to arrive any day now. The two girls were major music fans and T.J Tyler was just one of their current obsessions.

"No, but the post hadn't arrived when I left this morning, so maybe I do. This is even better than that though." Tia explained as their teacher walked into the room. "I'll tell you later." She whispered.

"I'll hold you to that." Mitchie responded as Mrs Reeves started to take attendance. Mitchie turned her attention back to the music homework she had to finish before lunch. They had to write a new song with both music and lyrics. Not a hard task in Mitchie's opinion, she'd been constantly writing songs for as long as she could remember, though granted that wasn't too long thanks to the accident, but still it came naturally to her. However this time she was stuck. She needed lyrics for the bridge so she could finish the song, but she could not think of any. What made it worse was that she sensed she'd been in exactly this position before but thanks to her little brain malfunction, she couldn't remember the solution.

"Mitchie Torres?" Mrs Reeves called out.

"Here." She responded. She sighed, closing her music book and returning it to her bag, deciding there was no point trying to finish without a piano. That was the one good thing about this whole amnesia thing, whilst she'd forgotten most of her memories, she'd retained the ability to play musical instruments as well as the usual skills learnt at a young age (reading, writing, walking, talking etc) which was apparently normal in cases like hers.

The bell rang and everyone rushed from the room, most in a hurry to get to their first class of the day.

"You have a free first right?" Tia checked as she and Mitchie casually walked down the corridor.

"Yeah, Hartley isn't in so I don't have English. Where do you want to spend it?"

"As if you have to ask." Tia said. The two girls rarely had free periods together but when they did, they usually spent them in the music room. Mr Ditune had grown fond of them over the last year and so was only too happy to allow them free use of the instruments.

As Mitchie took a seat at the piano a few minutes later, she remembered Tia's earlier excitement.

"So what were you trying to tell me earlier?" She asked whilst her fingers played a simple tune, filling the room with soft music.

"Oh yeah, I can't believe I forgot!" Tia responded as she opened her bag, searching through it. "What are you doing Friday night?" Mitchie thought for a moment.

"As far as I'm aware, nothing, though I'll have to check." One of the effects of her amnesia was an increase in forgetfulness, resulting in Mitchie repeatedly double or treble booking herself.

"Well you better make sure you're free because you're not going to want to miss out on this." Tia said as she pulled two tickets from her bag and slid them onto the piano, right into Mitchie's eye line. The seventeen year old stopped playing and inspected them, her eyes widening as she read the artist name.

"Your dad got them? I thought he said they were sold out?" Mitchie asked, excitement bubbling up inside her.

"They were, but he managed to pull a few strings and call in a few favours and voila, two front row tickets." Tia smiled proudly. It had taken a lot of persuasion to get her dad to do this for them.

"No freaking way!" Mitchie said, leaping from the piano stool and wrapping her arms around Tia.

"It's going to be the best night of our lives." Tia stated.

"And the longest week ever too. I hate having to wait for stuff, it's so frustrating." Mitchie said as she returned to the piano, starting to play the song she was working on.

"I swear I've heard that somewhere before." Tia said, taking a seat beside Mitchie.

"Please don't say that otherwise I'm screwed." Mitchie complained, hoping she wasn't accidentally writing an old pop song that she'd forgotten she'd heard before (she'd done that earlier in the year, leading to one of the most embarrassing days of her life.) Tia shrugged.

"I've probably just heard you play it. It's really good." She complimented, making Mitchie blush.

The girls continued to chat and plan for Friday as Mitchie struggled to write her song. Eventually the bell sounded, separating them for rest of the day, their schedules not matching up one bit.

_CR-CR-CR_

"This week has seriously dragged." Mitchie complained as she grabbed her stuff from the locker at the end of the day on Friday.

"Just think, in a few hours we'll be seeing Connect 3, live!" Tia squealed excitedly.

"Well, well, well if it isn't Miss forgetful." Mitchie glanced up from the white stiletto that had appeared beside her bag. Have you remembered that you don't have a life yet?" This girl was not very good at insults, though she liked to think she was.

"What do you wanted Steffi?" Mitchie sighed as she slammed her locker shut, standing so she was face to face with her. Steffi was the school's resident bitch. She'd hated Mitchie from her first day. She was an absolute stereotype: pretty, bitchy blond with an extreme fake tan. The type of girl every guy claimed to want to be with and who every girl who wasn't a part of her little gang made sure to try and steer clear of.

"I just wanted to say have fun at the concert tonight." Steffi said before walking away down the corridor. "Oh, and" She stopped and spun round, a nasty smirk crossing her face. "I'll see you there." She winked before strutting out of the building, leaving the two girls very unimpressed.

"She's going too? You have got to be kidding me." Mitchie moaned as she grabbed her bag and followed Tia out to the car park.

"I wouldn't worry about it Mitchie, so what if she's there, she won't have as good a time as us and it's not like we'll even see her. Wembley is huge, there's no chance we'll bump into her." Tia reasoned as she unlocked her car.

"You do realise that now you've said that, we're going to end up sitting next to her or something." Mitchie replied as she dumped her bag on the passenger seat of her own car.

"Even more so after that." Tia joked, dreading the idea of spending an entire evening with Steffi.

"So you'll get to mine at like six then I'll drive us to the stadium, right?" Mitchie asked, confirming their plans for the evening.

"I may come a bit earlier if that's cool?" Mitchie informed her it was, "You sure you're okay to drive?"

"Tia, it's been six months since the crash and I've driven almost every day for the last four. I'm pretty sure I'm capable of driving there and back safely." Mitchie stated.

"No I meant you sure you don't mind. I know you're capable of it." Tia explained, laughing at her friend's assumption. "I'll see you at about six." The girls shared a hug before getting in their respective cars and heading home.

_CR-CR-CR_

"What time will you be back?" Connie asked as she watched her daughter getting ready.

"I dunno, probably around midnight? I still can't believe I'm seeing Connect 3 live!" She hadn't stopped smiling since she'd gotten home, which made Connie smile too. She hadn't been sure about letting Mitchie go but after consulting the doctor about it, Connie had agreed and was hopeful that tonight could be the exact memory jog her daughter needed to remember her American life. That was why she hadn't told Mitchie about her previous encounter with Connect 3, hoping a sudden realisation would be more powerful.

The doorbell rang and Mitchie flew down the stairs in excitement. Connie chuckled as she followed her daughter at a much slower pace.

"Hey Mitch!" Tia greeted as the door opened.

"You got everything? Tickets? Money? Directions?" Mitchie asked as she allowed her friend to enter the house whilst she searched for her bag.

"Yes, yes and I borrowed my dad's sat nav so I doubt we'll get lost. Hi Connie" Tia said as Mrs Torres entered the room, Mitchie's bag in her hands.

"Looking for this?" She asked before handing the bag over.

"Thanks. We better get going, don't want to get there too late." Mitchie said, pulling Tia back over to the door.

"Remember Mitchie, if anything happens your father and I are only a phone call away." Since the accident Connie couldn't help but worry about her seventeen year old.

"We'll be fine mom, stop worrying. Bye!" She gave her a quick hug before grabbing the keys.

"Have fun girls." She waved to them until they were out of the drive. Perhaps after tonight she'd have her Mitchie back properly. She could only hope.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Road trip!" Tia said as the car turned out of Mitchie's road. "So, new stuff or classic?" She asked, holding up two Connect 3 albums.

"I haven't listened to the whole of the new album yet." Mitchie admitted.

"New it is." Tia said, sliding the CD into the player and turning it up.

"Do you know what songs they're doing tonight?" Mitchie asked nearly an hour later as they neared the stadium.

"No clue, I avoided it on purpose, want to be surprised, you know?"

"Same, it's not fun knowing everything beforehand."

"There it is!" Tia exclaimed pointing at the large lit up building ahead of them.

"So where do I park?" They followed the signs into the nearby multi-storey.

"We're going to see Connect 3!" The girls squealed as they walked over to the main entrance, an act most people walking towards the arena also partook in.

"Tickets?" The guy behind the desk asked. Their excitement grew as the girls watched him inspect their tickets, knowing it wasn't long until they'd be seeing the performance. "Looks like you'll be needing these too." The guy said, handing over two passes. "When the show's over go to the right-hand side of the stage and show these to the guy on security, he'll tell you where to go." Tia thanked him, taking the passes from him and dragging a stunned Mitchie toward their seats.

"Backstage?" Mitchie said, shocked, as she inspected the pass Tia had handed her.

"Did I forget to mention that fact?" Tia joked as they arrived at their seats. She knew how excited her friend would be about actually getting to meet them, especially Shane Grey, who Tia knew was Mitchie's favourite, which is why she'd taken the decision to keep quiet about the extra special aspect her dad had arranged. It had been hard to keep her mouth shut all week and she was rather proud she'd managed it.

"You rock girl!" Mitchie said as she gave her friend a massive hug. She could tell tonight was going to be one of the best of her life. She would meet _the_ Shane Grey, the best looking guy in the music industry. How many girls could claim they'd done that?

"Well look who it is." Mitchie practically growled as she heard Steffi's annoying voice beside her. Tia laughed at her friend's reaction.

"You have got to be kidding." Mitchie muttered as she saw the blond take a seat beside her. They were in a massive arena with twelve and a half thousand seats, and the one person she wanted to avoid that evening just happened to be sat next to her. Sometimes life wasn't fair.

Before any more words could be exchanged between the two school enemies the lights dimmed, alerting the crowd that the opening act was about to start.

"Apparently this girl won some sort of competition in America to record with Shane Grey and she was so good the label signed her instantly and gave her the position on the tour. Plus she's our age! How lucky is she?" Tia whispered as the excitement built up in the stadium, the crowd waiting to see whether the warm up act would be any good. Mitchie was jealous of whoever it was. Her dream was to be a rock star standing on stage in front of thousands of screaming fans and she was about to see a girl who had already made it, working alongside a top group no less, at a ridiculously young age. She wondered if she'd ever been brave enough in her past life to enter similar competitions.

"Lucky bitch." Mitchie joked as multiple coloured lights lit the stage, before a bright white spotlight shone on the back wall which slowly slid apart revealing a long black hair girl who just exuded confidence. Those that knew her would never guess this was the same girl who had been purely a follower the summer before. The crowd cheered as the girl strummed her guitar, starting to play her single. In the front girl one girl stood confused, glimpses of a memory attacking her mind. Her head ached and her lips muttered a single word with no instruction from her brain.

"Peggy?" Mitchie whispered as she stared uncertainly at the girl on stage in front of her. She had no recollection of meeting her yet Mitchie couldn't shake the feeling there had been a time when she'd known this incredibly talented girl.


	2. ReMeet And Greet

**AN: I just have to say thank you to everyone who reviewed, favourited or alerted the first chapter, the response to this story has just been amazing and it's made me very happy! Here's chapter 2!**

**Chapter 2 - Backstage Re-Meet and Greet:**

Mitchie sunk into her chair. All around her people were cheering, enjoying the performance that up and coming music sensation Margaret Dupree was giving, but Mitchie couldn't. Her head was pounding, almost as if someone was trying to push a brick through her brain. There was the flicker of a memory, of a stage and the colours green and white. Mitchie thought she knew the girl on stage under a different name, though before tonight she couldn't remember ever seeing her before.

_You gotta scream until there's nothing left_

_With your last breath _

_Here I am _

_Here I am_

_Make them listened_

_Cos there's no way you'll be ignored_

_Not anymore_

_Say here I am_

_Here I am _

_Here I am oh, oh, oh_

_Here I am oh, oh, oh_

_Here I am_

"Mitch, you okay?" Tia asked as the song drew to a close and Margaret Dupree left the stage, having gained thousands of new fans, the lights returning to normal.

"Yeah, my head just hurts a bit, no biggy." Mitchie said as she felt the pain easing. There'd only been a few times since the accident that she'd felt like that. The doctor said it was a good thing, it showed an improvement in her condition, though Mitchie wasn't so sure and she couldn't help but wonder why some new musician would affect her amnesia.

"Aw poor ickle Mitchie, is the music too loud? Maybe you should go home and tuck up in bed; I mean it is after your bedtime." Steffi teased. Mitchie rolled her eyes; she wasn't going to let anything ruin tonight, not Steffi and definitely not some stinking headache.

"At least we have something she doesn't." Tia whispered with a smug grin as she subtly raised her pass, indicating what she meant.

"Remind me to thank your dad next time I see him." Mitchie said excitedly before turning her attention back to the stage as three of the hottest guys in the music industry were slowly lowered onto it, guitars in hand, causing a massive eruption of squeals throughout the arena.

"Hello Wembley!" Shane called out to the crowd as Nate Black and Jason Green walked around the stage checking all the other instruments were properly in place. "We're so glad to see so many of you here tonight for this, the final night of our 'Play My Music' tour. It's been an incredible few months performing for all our fans and we hope you really enjoy tonight's show." He walked across the front of the stage, taking in all the excited faces of the people in the front row, a habit of his developed on this tour. The fans got to see his face, why couldn't he look at some of theirs? "We have a few surprises for you, and each other, tonight to make this concert extra special." He paused near the centre, a face catching his eye. He blinked, trying to get a clearer focus on the girl, but the stage lights were making it difficult. He shook his head, knowing how unlikely it was that she'd just happen to be there, right in front of him in the front row. "So are you guys ready to rock?" He asked as he slipped his microphone into it's stand and took his position in the centre spot. "I can't hear you!"

Mitchie, Tia and Steffi screamed with all their might. The atmosphere in the arena was so electric it made their hearts beat faster and the hair stand up on the back of their necks. The screams doubled in volume as the band began to plan, the diehard fans instantly recognising Connect 3's first big hit.

_CR-CR-CR_

"This song came about thanks to a very special person in my life." Shane said a few hours later as the concert was nearing its end. A stage hand brought him a stool and he perched upon it, adjusting the microphone stand accordingly. It just felt right to sit while he played this song; it was how he had been when he'd first played it for her. He picked up his guitar and strummed a few chords, checking it sounded okay, before placing the strap around his neck. "She showed me where I was going wrong with my life and helped me become the better person I am today. Bit of advice for you all, when you find someone that has a positive effect on your life, that makes you feel better than you ever thought you could, keep them close, don't let them slip away." He spoke from the heart, regretting that they'd lost touch, as he strummed the gentle melody. She'd been right, people did like the song, and they did buy it. Upon release it went almost instantly to number one before becoming one of the band's most successful singles. Rumours spread like wildfire that the summer had not only changed the pop world's bad boy but had found him love too. How Shane had wished that, for once, the celebrity gossip was true.

_You're the voice I hear inside my head_

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you_

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you_

"Mitchie, isn't this the song you were playing in music class the other day? The one that was supposed to be an _original_." Steffi yelled over the song. "I swear the chorus of this sounds exactly like the instrumental bit of your song. You little cheat." Mitchie listened as the chorus rolled around again, her eyes widened as she realise the similarity between this and the bit of her strong she'd been struggling with.

"I thought I'd heard it somewhere before." Tia commented as they turned their attention back to the heart throb playing so close to them they could probably reach out and touch him, if it wasn't for the scary security guy employed to prevent them doing so.

_To fix the puzzle that I see inside_

_Painting all my dreams the colour of your smile_

_When I find you it'll be alright_

_I need to try to get to where you are_

_Could it be you're not that far?_

Shane glanced back to where he had seen the girl who looked so like her, but the lights obscured his view. He had to admit, he'd missed her. A lot. Every show they'd done in England there'd been a large part of him that hoped she would turn up, but it had never happened. He was starting to lose faith that he would ever see her again.

They'd stayed in touch for a while after she'd left and then a few months back all contact just ended suddenly and with no reason, leaving the middle member of the cookie cutter pop band wondering what he'd done wrong. She wouldn't answer his calls or reply to his texts, she just disappeared. She was his missing piece and he'd lost her, again.

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me _

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you._

And he meant it; he needed to find her again. Somehow, someway, one day he would have her back in his arms and on that day, he would tell her how he really felt. Every time he sang the chorus he wondered, did she still sing their song? It took all his focus to not slip into the other words.

_Been feeling lost_

_Can't find the words to say_

_Spending all my time_

_Stuck in yesterday_

_Where you are_

_Is where I wanna be_

_Oh, next to you_

_You next to me_

As she listened to the chorus a third time Mitchie realised just how perfectly the lyrics would fit into her bridge, almost as if they'd been written to work together. It was probably a subconscious act on her part, maybe she'd listened to it just before she started writing, though she couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to it than that. She saw Shane glance in her direction and blushed, he was most definitely her favourite. She knew he wasn't looking at her and even if he was, what would it matter? She was just some fan standing in the crowd at yet another of his gigs. She thought of the mystery person who inspired the song. Whoever she was, they must be amazing to have inspired _the_ Shane Gray.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Well Steffi, as enjoyable as it was to be here with you, me and Mitchie have other places to be." Tia said at the end of the concert as they gather their belongings.

"Aw, do you have to get home? Is it too late for you Mitchie?" Steffi teased. The other two just rolled their eyes.

"Whatever. Come on Tia lets bounce." Mitchie said, leading the way along the row of seats. Steffi grabbed Tia by the elbow, pulling her back to whisper in her ear.

"You better remember our deal. From where I'm standing I'm starting to lose faith in you Tia. You keep acting like this and when everything's over, your space in the group might just have been mysteriously filled by someone else." Steffi threatened before putting on a fake smile. "Ciao!" She tottered away.

"You coming?" Mitchie asked glancing over her shoulder to see Tia was further behind than she expected. Tia caught up and the two girls slowly approached the security guard stood beside what Mitchie assumed was the door to backstage.

"May I see your passes ladies?" The guy asked in a gruff voice. Mitchie could understand why he'd taken a security job, he was insanely tall with huge muscles and his shaven head and goatee made him all the more intimidating. Mitchie found herself feeling nervous just standing next to him.

They held the passes up and he closely inspected them both, asking them to clarify their names before checking a list. After a few moments he looked at them with a smile on his face.

"Everything checked out, you can go in." He opened the door, catching the attention of a petite blond who was walking past.

"This is Ellie, she'll take you to the dressing rooms so you can meet the band." He informed them, before turning his focus to a group of squealing preteens behind them.

"Come with me." Ellie said in a peppy voice, leading them through various corridors where people were frantically rushing back and forth, congratulating each other on a tour well done. "Ms Dupree, I'm so sorry!" Mitchie heard Ellie apologise and looked in front of her to see that the blond had bumped into the opening act, causing the water she had been carrying to spill everywhere. The girls waited for the musician to freak out, as Hot Tunes always claimed they did when accidents happened backstage, but were surprised by Margaret's reaction.

"Ellie, I've told you before, call me Peggy okay? Ms Dupree is my mom. And don't worry about the water, really it doesn't matter. You showing backstagers around again?" Peggy asked, glancing at the two nervous looking girls behind her, her face instantly lighting up when she saw a familiar brunette. "Well, if it isn't Mitchie Torres! What are you doing here?" She gave the now very confused seventeen year old a quick hug. "Does Shane know you're here? He's going to be so thrilled!" Peggy continued, having heard all about Shane's late night 'Mitchie discussions' as Nate had called them. Tia looked at her friend, expecting an explanation from her friend but receiving only an unsure shrug ofthe shoulders in return. "Mitchie?" Peggy asked when she received no response from the girl she had gotten to know quite well over the summer.

"I'm sorry Peggy but I really need to be getting these two to the Connect 3 dressing room, the guys will need to leave soon and you know what their manager is like if they're delayed." Ellie said awkwardly. "Perhaps you and... Mitchie was it? You could catch up later?" Peggy nodded and let them be on their way, leaving her wondering why Mitchie had refused to speak to her.

"Just wait here a moment." Ellie instructed the two girls as she knocked on a door marked 'Connect 3'. The petite assistant entered the room once she heard a grunt in response, pulling the door closed behind her. "I have some back stage pass people here for you." They could hear her explain to whoever was in the room. Another grunt was heard before Ellie returned to the hallway. "You can go in now." She instructed them, opening the door to reveal Connect 3's dressing room, complete with all three band members.

"Wow." Mitchie gasped as she and Tia entered the room slowly, taking everything in. There were mirrors covering three of the walls. The fourth was painted a deep green colour, with a world map covered in small colourful circular stickers, clearly stuck on specific locations. Two luxury leather sofas sat in the centre of the room upon which Jason Green was sat flicking through a bird magazine. Against each wall stood a desk, each with a separate band member's name on it. Nate and Shane were sat at theirs. Whilst Nate sat typing away on a laptop, Shane was staring at himself in the mirror, trying to fix an awkward piece of hair which was refusing to stay in place. "This is incredible." Mitchie said to Tia, who just nodded in response, too stunned to speak.

Shane's head snapped up as he heard her voice, the voice he'd grown to know so well over the summer, the voice he'd heard so many times over the phone earlier that year. He stared at her reflection in the mirror, unsure if his eyes were deceiving him. He slowly turned around and took in her appearance. Her hair was darker and she seemed thinner. She was wearing more makeup than she had over the summer, which disappointed Shane who thought she looked so naturally beautiful that she shouldn't cover it up with cosmetics. There was no mistaking her though. There, stood in his dressing room, on the final night of the tour, a look of pure excitement in her eyes, was the girl with the voice.

"Mitchie?" He said, standing and walking over to her, instantly wrapping his arms around her when she was close enough.

She stood still, unsure what was going on. First Margaret Dupree and now Shane Gray? Was she on some hidden camera show that Tia had forgotten to mention? As Shane let go Mitchie glanced over at her friend for suggestions as to what was going on, but all she got in return was a confused (and somewhat jealous) look.

"You know Margaret Dupree _and_ Shane Gray and you never told me?" Tia said to her friend, forgetting for a moment they were still in the presence of three world famous rock stars.

"No, I don't, I swear I have no idea why they know my name." Mitchie defended herself, sensing Tia was more upset than she was letting on. She turned to Shane, hoping he may have some answers, but he looked just as confused as she felt. "How do you know my name?" She asked.

Shane's face fell. Her words had hurt. How could she be claiming to not remember him? It had only been six months.

"Mitch, it's me, Shane." He realised how unhelpful that was to say when half the world knew who he was, but he didn't know what else to say. Had he really done something so bad to her that she didn't want her friend to know they knew each other? If so, why didn't he realise it? And why would she come backstage if she was mad at him? He tried to take her hand but she pulled away, looking almost scared by the way he was acting.

"I know who you are, but how can you know me? I've never met you before in my life." Shane looked at her as if she was crazy.

"Maybe you have." Tia muttered. Mitchie looked at her friend, wondering what she could know that Mitchie didn't. Tia sighed, surprised Mitchie didn't realise what she was talking about when it was mentioned almost every day of her life. "Amnesia, remember." Mitchie's eyes widened as she realised what Tia meant.

"I knew you before?" Mitchie asked, suddenly wishing more than she had for the last six months that she could remember what had happened in her life.


	3. End Of Summer

**AN: Wow, you guys are seriously amazing. Thank you. Here's another chapter, hopefully it'll make your Monday a little better. Most of this chapter is a flashback. Things will move forward more in the next chapter, promise.**

**Chapter 3 – End Of Summer**

"Last time I saw you we were saying goodbye at the end of Camp Rock." Shane explained as they all gathered on the sofa's to talk. Mitchie just stared at him blankly, having no recollection of what he was talking about. "You really don't remember." She shook her head sadly.

_Flashback_

"_Shane?" Mitchie said, approaching him slowly._

"_You came." He said, turning around to face the girl who had changed his life in only a summer. "I was beginning to think you wouldn't" He admitted. "Canoe?" Mitchie nodded._

"_Sorry, my parents needed to talk to me and it took longer than I thought." Mitchie explained as she placed a life jacket on._

_Shane pushed the canoe a little way into the lake before offering Mitchie his hand. As she took it he felt his skin tingle. It was a sensation he'd never experienced before, something only Mitchie made him feel. He helped her into the Canoe before grabbing two oars and clambering in himself._

"_Maybe we can avoid going in circles this time." Shane joked as they started to row towards the centre and into the moonlight. They sat in silence for a few minutes. "Mitch, are you crying?" Shane asked, noticing the tears rolling down her cheeks._

"_Sorry." She rapidly brushed them away._

"_What's wrong babe?" He asked, taking her hands in his own. Mitchie closed her eyes, trying to decide whether to tell him or not._

"_I'm leaving." She said in a hushed voice. Saying the words made her suddenly realise they were actually true._

"_Tomorrow, I know. I can't believe the summer is already over."_

"_That's not what I mean." Mitchie explained as more tears escaped from her eyes. "I'm moving a long way away. I have no choice. My mom got a new job so the whole family's going." She said sadly. Shane couldn't believe it. He felt closer to the girl in front of him then he had to anyone before, he didn't want to have to say a proper goodbye when he'd only just found her._

"_Where are you moving to?" He asked, not sure he wanted to know the answer._

"_England."_

"_Yeah, that's a long way away." Shane replied, staring at the bottom of the canoe, not wanting her to see the emotion on his face._

"_This isn't goodbye." Mitchie said, placing her hand on his arm._

"_Isn't it?" Shane asked, his eyes locking with hers._

"_No. We'll stay in touch; I'll make sure of it. You won't be getting rid of me Mr Grey, I am your missing piece after all." She teased him._

"_That you are Miss Torres. Who knows, maybe it won't be so bad, maybe I'll be in England by the end of the year." As the words came out of his mouth he started to plot. It was time Connect 3 visited the other side of the ocean. What better way than with a world tour?_

"_I just wish I had more time to prepare. I wish it wasn't all so sudden." Mitchie explained._

"_When are you actually leaving?"_

"_A week's time. I'll have barely any time to pack anything or..." She paused, realising the worst part. "Sierra's going to kill me." She groaned before putting her head in her hands and bursting into tears. Shane felt helpless, he wasn't used to dealing with crying girls and now he was stranded on a lake with one. He carefully manoeuvred himself so he could wrap his arms around her gently._

"_It'll be okay Mitchie, she'll understand. And you'll still see her. It's not like you'll be stuck in England forever." He soothed her as he rubbed circles on her back, a movement he'd seen his mum do to his younger brother when he was upset, assuming it was comforting._

"_Thanks Shane." She said as she raised her head, knowing she probably looked a mess. As she looked up she realised how close they were. "Hi." She whispered._

"_Hey." Shane replied, laughing softly at their actions. She blushed as her hair fell into her eyes. It was too much for the pop star to resist. He reached his hand up, moving her hair behind her ear. His hand lay gently against her cheek and slowly he leaned in. Mitchie followed his actions and there, in the middle of the lake, under the moonlight, the two shared their first kiss. It was gentle, simple, yet full of emotion. They pulled apart, both blushing as brightly as tomatoes._

"_Shane?" They heard a voice call from the shoreline._

"_Mitchie, are you out there?" Another voice called._

"_Talk about ruining the moment." Shane joked, moving back to his side of the canoe as he recognised Nate and Caitlyn's voices._

"_I guess we should head back." Mitchie said, even though she wanted to do anything but._

"_They'll come join us if we don't go to them." Shane reasoned, picking up the oars and handing one over. They rowed back in slowly, not wanting the evening to end._

_CR-CR-CR_

'_**Are you free today?**__' Mitchie text Sierra as she arrived back home. She looked up at the house she'd lived in for as long as she could remember. There were so many memories locked within its walls. She couldn't believe that in just a few days she'd be leaving it behind for good._

_Her phone chimed, indicating she had a new message._

'_**For a bit, yeah. Usual place, 20 minutes?**__' Sierra's reply said. Mitchie quickly text back agreeing before grabbing her suitcase from the back of the van and dragging it up to her bedroom._

"_No point unpacking that." She muttered to herself, placing it in a corner. She sighed, looking around her room wondering where to start packing things away. Her eyes landed on the large Connect 3 poster above her bed, or more specifically, Shane's face on it. She laughed, remembering the numerous times she'd kissed it as a joke. _

"_I've done it for real now." She thought before flopping down onto her bed and pulling out her phone again._

'_Got home safe. Now to start packing again. How do you do it for tours?' She text him, hoping that 24 hours was a long enough gap between talking to prevent her from looking desperate._

"_I've got some boxes for you." Connie said, placing them in her daughter's room. "Don't overload them or your father won't be able to carry them downstairs."_

"_Okay." Mitchie replied, not looking up. She knew the job was her mom's dream one, but she couldn't help the anger she felt at being forced from the life, people and places she knew with no choice in the matter._

"_Mitchie, I know you're annoyed but I couldn't turn this opportunity down. One day you'll be offered everything you've dreamed of and, on that day, you'll understand." Connie explained. Mitchie sighed, she knew her mom was right but it didn't change a thing._

"_I'm going to see Sierra, may as well get my goodbye over and done with." She grabbed her phone and keys and walked from the room, slamming the front door on the way out. _

_CR-CR-CR_

"_Mitchie!" Sierra squealed as she ran across the field to her best friend. The two girls met and threw their arms around each other. Their summer apart had made the two teens realise how much they hated being away from each other. "It's been way too long." _

"_I know! How was China?" Sierra's parents had surprised her on the last day of school with airplane tickets to China with a month between departure and return dates._

"_Incredible!" She exclaimed, "I am so going to live there when I'm older. How was the music camp?" Sierra asked, taking a seat on the grassy ground._

"_It was the best thing that's ever happened to me." Mitchie replied happily, sitting beside her oldest friend who raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "I met Shane Grey."_

"_No freaking way!" Sierra exclaimed. "Did you see Jason too?" Jason Green was her favourite band member, especially with his bird obsession. If there was one thing, apart from China, that Sierra knew, it was birds._

"_Yeah and Nate. They performed too. They're so good live Sierra, I don't know how they got so talented, it's unfair! They're genuinely nice guys too, nothing like the media portrays them as." _

"_What even _The_ Shane Grey?" Sierra asked, not quite sure she could believe her friend. _

"_He's not so bad once you get to know him," Mitchie said, defending the boy who had stolen her heart. _

"_And did you 'get to know him'" Sierra asked, her fingers creating the quote marks. Mitchie blushed, unable to help herself. "Oh my word, you actually did! Tell all!" Sierra said excitedly. _

_Mitchie's phone chimed, providing her with a few moments to consider how much to tell her best friend._

'_**It takes practice, plus I usually keep a bag permanently packed. Do you know what happened to my hair straighteners?**__' Mitchie laughed at Shane's reply. She knew exactly what happened to them but if Nate wasn't telling, neither was she._

"_Who's texting you?" Sierra asked. She hadn't meant to sound so rude; she was just used to being the only one Mitchie text, that was how it had been for years._

"_Shane." Mitchie muttered embarrassedly. _

"_A famous rock star is texting _you_?" Sierra asked in disbelief._

"_Pop star." Mitchie corrected as a force of habit. "And yeah, we got quite close over the summer and decided to try and stay in touch." _

"_You are one lucky girl Mitchie Torres." Sierra said with a hint of jealousy. "Apparently, according to Hot Tunes, Connect 3 are heading out on tour again soon to make up for the one they had to cancel this summer. Maybe you and I could use your new friendship to score some tickets to the local show?" Mitchie's smile fell. She knew this was the time to tell Sierra, no matter how much she didn't want to._

"_That might be a bit hard." Mitchie stated, pulling a piece of grass from the ground and fiddling with it nervously._

"_Well if they won't give you a freebie we'll just have to pay." Sierra shrugged, not that bothered about the money aspect. _

"_I won't be here for it." Mitchie explained, hating that for the second time in three days she had to say goodbye. _

"_How do you know, they haven't even released the dates yet. Wait, did Shane tell you already?" Sierra said, assuming her friend would now have insider information._

"_I'm moving. To England. Later this week." Mitchie admitted bluntly. _

_Sierra was silent, the news slowly sinking in._

"_But school starts next week and we agreed to audition for the school play together this year." She stated, not believing her best friend._

"_I haven't got a choice." Mitchie said bitterly. The two girls sat in silence, neither sure what to say next. _

"_So you're leaving at the end of the week?" Sierra clarified when the silence became too much for her to bear._

"_Saturday morning. I have to get everything packed up and ready to be shipped by Friday." Another silence followed this one even more awkward than the last. It was briefly interrupted by Mitchie receiving another text._

'_**I'm going to kill Nate. Orange juice? Seriously? You couldn't have just put them in water?**__' Mitchie could practically hear the unimpressed moan in Shane's words._

'_**It was all we had to hand. Now the world can see your true curly hair which is much better**__' She quickly text back._

"_We'll always have text." Sierra commented as she noticed her friend typing away. "And it's not like you'll be stuck in England all the time." She was trying to find the positives, knowing a long distance friendship would be hard to keep up and would probably ultimately fail._

"_You know, Shane said you'd say that." Mitchie commented, remembering their last canoe ride. She looked up at her friend, deciding to inform her of the biggest bit of news from her summer, but the sudden change in Sierra's facial expression was so drastic it shocked Mitchie into silence._

"_You told Shane?" The anger was clear in Sierra's voice but Mitchie didn't understand it. "You told some pop star" Sierra spat "before you bothered to tell your supposed best friend?" Mitchie opened her mouth to respond, but Sierra cut her off, "I get it Mitch. He's famous and 'cool' whereas I'm just the geek who doesn't actually matter. I can't believe you."_

"_Sierra it wasn't like that! He just..." Mitchie tried to explain but Sierra stopped her._

"_You know what Mitchie, I'm glad you're leaving. It means I won't have to spend another year as 'Mitchie's sidekick', only mattering when it works for you. I might actually be able to make some more friends. So go off and have fun with your new 'cool' rock star friend, go and have a spiffing time in England, do whatever you want because I honestly couldn't care less." With that Sierra stood and stormed off leaving Mitchie sat alone in the grass wondering how her life could go from perfect to such as mess in so short an amount of time._

_Her phone beeped again and she opened the message, though she could barely read the text through her tears._

'_**You so owe me Torres, but as you're so insistent I might leave it a while before I buy new ones. Do you really prefer the curls?' **_

_Though Mitchie never knew it, and Sierra never admitted it, if anyone had asked Sierra her real reason for getting in a fight with her best friend that afternoon the truth would be she was scared to lose Mitchie, who had been there for her all her life, just because of distance. It was easier for her to deal with if there was a better reason behind it. The girls didn't speak again before Mitchie left, leaving their friendship nothing more than a memory once she got to England. _


	4. Rainy England

**AN:** **Here's another chapter for you, thought I'd let you have it before the weekend even though I'm so tired I can barely keep my eyes open. Enjoy! I may give you a second one later if I get some more energy as this is quite short.**

**Chapter 4 – Rainy England**

"You seriously don't remember anything that happened before the crash?" Jason asked, his face showing his surprise as Mitchie explained her situation. She nodded in confirmation. "Man, amnesia sucks."

"You can say that again." Mitchie said.

"Amnesia sucks."

"She didn't mean literally." Nate chided.

"Then why did she say it?" Jason replied, confused.

"So you didn't stop talking to me because you were annoyed?" Shane asked, trying to move things on.

"Not as far as I'm aware." Mitchie wished she could remember, especially now she knew she had been friends with Connect 3 in the past.

"Mitchie." Tia spoke up from her seat nearby. As fascinating the discovery that her friend knew Connect 3 had been, the novelty had rapidly worn off when she'd ended up sitting watching Mitchie talk to them whilst she remained left out. "We should be getting back." She had grown very bored and it was already eleven pm. She wanted to get home.

"Oh, right, yeah." Mitchie stood up even though she didn't want to leave, but if Tia wanted to it was only fair. "It was great meeting you or, I guess, re-meeting you." She was surprised when Shane came and gave her a hug.

"It's good to see you're okay Mitch." He said then watched sadly as she and Tia walked away, leaving the guys alone.

"I can't believe that happened to her." Nate commented as he started to clear up his area of the dressing room. They'd already stayed for an hour later than they were supposed to, he was pretty sure their manager would want them to leave soon.

"I wonder how much a car crash hurts." Jason pondered.

"Quite a bit I'd imagine." Nate replied, before turning to Shane. "You alright?" He asked his strangely quiet friend.

"No." Shane replied. "I can't let her go again. I lost her once; I can't do it a second time." He said, grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair.

"What are you going to do man? You live in two different countries, thousands of miles apart. We have to get on a plane back to LA tomorrow morning and she doesn't even remember you." Nate laid out all the facts. He was definitely the most practical of the three.

"I just won't get on the plane." Shane said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "I'll help her remember. We were going to have a break now the tour is over anyway, you're going to be off with Caitlyn, Jason has his bird watching holiday," Jason clapped his hands in excitement at the thought, "I can just stay here for a while." He opened the door, aware that every second he wasted arguing with Nate was costing him the chance to catch Mitchie before she left. Nate moved in front of him, stopping him from going.

"Dude, just think about this before you go and do something stupid. Think about how hard it's going to be every time you mention something from last summer and she just stares at you blankly. She can't remember any of it Shane. Maybe it's time to move on." He didn't want his friend to make a mistake. He'd seen how devastated he was when Mitchie stopped texting; he didn't want to see him in that state again.

"Or maybe him being around is exactly what she needs to remember her life. They say that people who suffer from amnesia can suddenly remember everything if they get a big enough jolt from the past." Jason said, giving his view. He felt bad for Mitchie; he reckoned it must be quite scary waking up one day not knowing who you are.

"It's two against one. Out of my way." Shane said as he pulled on his leather jacket and pushed past Nate.

"He's gonna regret this." Nate sighed as he returned to clearing things away.

_CR-CR-CR_

"That was _so_ weird." Mitchie said as they walked out of the stadium.

"Mhmm" was all Tia responded with.

"I can't believe we met Connect 3. And they were actually nice guys. Steffi is going to be so jealous." Tia didn't respond, knowing that wasn't all Steffi was going to feel. "This was a seriously great night!" Mitchie continued. When she still got no response she glanced over at her friend only to find a very sour look on her face.

"Okay Ti, what's up? We just had a once in a lifetime experience and now you look like the world's come to an end."

"Well I'm glad you had such a good time Mitchie." Tia snapped. "Let's just go home, okay?" Mitchie didn't understand what was wrong. She unlocked the car and Tia flung the door opened, taking her place in the passenger seat in a huff.

"Mitchie, wait!" She paused, her door half open, and turned to find _the_ Shane Grey rushing across the car park towards her.

"Shane?" Mitchie said, confused as to why he was chasing after her.

"I know you don't know me, well you do but you've forgotten, so it's like you don't, but I want to help you." He blurted out as he arrived beside her. Inside the car Tia rolled her eyes in disbelief and annoyance.

"Help me?" Mitchie asked, not understanding what he meant.

"You saved me last summer. You stopped me throwing everything away, helped me remember who I used to be. You were the missing piece I needed to find and I want to be yours. I want to help you remember who you are: Mitchie Torres, the girl with the voice, who changed me in a single summer."

Shane took her hand as she stared at him, shocked by what he was saying; certain he had the wrong girl.

"Connect 3 are taking a break now that the tour is done. If you let me, I'll stay here with you in rainy England" She laughed when, almost as soon as he said that, a raindrop splashed against her nose. "I'll help you find who you are. One memory, that's all it could take to bring everything back. And if not you get to spend a few weeks with _the_ Shane Grey." It was clear that not all of his cockiness had been left behind after the summer.

"Well, when you put it like that, how can I say no?" Mitchie joked, "Where will you stay though? I don't want you wasting money on a hotel just for me. I'm not that important." She continued, feeling guilty.

"Oh but you are Mitchie. I'm sure I can figure something out."

"You really want to help me that much?" She asked uncertainly. Inside the car Tia listened carefully, knowing she'd be required to recall as many details as possible.

"Of course, I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't." Shane said. "Here, take my number, again," He typed it into her phone, "give me a call tomorrow and we'll sort something out." He smiled and gave her a brief hug. "I've missed you Mitch." He whispered before pulled back and walking away. Mitchie climbed into her car in a daze, shocked by everything that had happened that night.

"Shane Grey just gave me his number. This is so surreal." She said in shock.

"Great." Tia said grumpily before pulling out her IPod and sticking in her headphones, turning the volume way up. Mitchie sighed. It was going to be a long journey back.

_CR-CR-CR_

"I don't believe you." The voice on the other end of the phone said suspiciously.

"I swear I'm telling the truth. I know it doesn't sound real but it is. He was hugging her and everything. I think all those rumours about Shane Grey finding love over the summer may be true, I think his new musical muse, as the press called her, is our very own American girl." Tia explained, filling the other person in on what she had discovered that night.

"Intriguing. Good work. And you say he's staying in England for a while?" Tia confirmed that's what he had said. "Well isn't she a lucky girl. You did well tonight Tia."

"Thanks." She was glad to finally be getting some praise from her friend after having to put up with insults for the last few weeks. "Can I come back now?"

"Of course, you've done what I needed you to. The girls will be so happy to have you back I'm sure." Tia smiled, glad she could finally return to her group.

"I'll see you Monday then." Tia said happy she'd finally return to her rightful place in the school social system.

"Of course. Ciao." The girl on the phone said before the line suddenly went dead, as it always did. She had to get the last word and instantly hanging up was her way of ensuring she did.

Tia thought about everything that had happened over the last few weeks and felt a twinge of guilt, not sure how Mitchie would react when she discovered the truth. She turned out her bedroom light, deciding not to give it another thought. What was done was done; it was how their school worked, Mitchie needed to realise that.


	5. Welcome To My Home

**AN: Sorry about the delay in updating, I had a hangover on Friday and then spent the weekend writing later chapters (I write by hand first and then type it up).**

Chapter 5 – Welcome To My Home

"Morning sweetie, how was the concert? I didn't hear you come in last night so I guess it went on late?" Connie asked her daughter when she arrived in the kitchen late the next morning. She placed a plate full of pancakes in front of Mitchie before taking a seat opposite.

"It was quite confusing." Mitchie said as she dug in to her breakfast whilst explaining the previous evening's revelations.

"I'm so glad you met him again, he was such a lovely boy last summer." Mitchie's mouth dropped open.

"You knew _I_ knew _the_ Shane Grey and you didn't tell me?" She yelled, annoyed her mom had kept this very important information a secret.

"The doctor said it was better to not overload you with information about the past and I didn't know if you were still in contact with him after we moved. I wasn't sure it was important." Connie explained. Her relationship with Mitchie had turned so sour before the accident that mother and daughter barely spoke.

"What's all this yelling about?" Steve Torres asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Mom knew I knew Shane Grey and she didn't tell me!" Mitchie said

"Ah, you finally remembered." Steve said as he grabbed a muffin from the counter top.

"You knew too?" Mitchie said in disbelief.

"Yes, you two performed together in the summer." He said. "Right, I'm off to the hardware store, I'll be back late." Torres hardware had been quite a success since Steve opened his first overseas store, but it required him to work most days of the week, including weekends. He said his goodbyes before slipping out the door.

"So you know Shane too?" Mitchie asked, an idea striking her as she remembered what Shane had told her the night before.

"He helped out in the kitchen at Camp for the last few days and you talked about him constantly all summer, complaining at first but gradually you started to grow fond of him. The press really didn't give him a fair name." Connie replied. She watched her daughter trying to figure out what to say next and smiled. Though it would sound awful to anyone outside of the situation, Connie was actually glad about her daughter's amnesia. After the accident their relationship improved vastly and, in an odd way, Connie felt like she actually got her daughter back, rather than lost her.

"He wants to help me." Mitchie stated, not sure how her mom would feel about the suggestion she was working her way towards. "He said I helped him find himself last summer and he wants to do the same for me."

"That's very kind of him." Connie commented as she started clearing away the breakfast dishes. "Won't that be a bit hard though, with him in America and you here? Not to mention very expensive. Calls overseas cost an excessive amount."

"He's going to stay in England for a while so he can see me and stuff. I tried to persuade him it wasn't necessary but he insisted."

"Where is he staying?" Connie asked, loading the dishwasher and thus missing the smile on Mitchie's face as the conversation went exactly where she wanted it to.

"He isn't sure yet, it was a very last minute decision. He's trying to find a local hotel by tonight that he can trust to keep his presence a secret." Mitchie explained as she gathered her dirty dishes to help her mom. "He already missed his flight back to American and he claims that means he has no choice but to stay." She'd enjoyed waking up to a text from Shane Grey, it was definitely the best start to the day she'd had in a while.

"Michelle Emily Torres, are you telling me that this boy changed his plans last minute for you and now he's going to waste his hard earned money on some overpriced hotel, just because he wants to help you out?"Connie said, fairly sure she was playing into her daughter's hands but continuing anyway.

"Maybe." Mitchie admitted, her eyes focussed on the ground.

"And it's only him, not his band mates too?" She clarified. It wasn't that she had anything against Nate and Jason, she just didn't know them as well.

"Yeah, the other two went back home this morning so he's on his own." Mitchie said, feeling guilty as she realised the situation Shane, who she didn't even remember knowing, had put himself in for her. Connie stood staring out the window in thought for a moment. She knew her husband wouldn't be thrilled about the suggestion she was about to make, but the thought of a nineteen year old boy stuck alone in an unfamiliar place living out of a hotel made her feel guilty, especially when he was doing it for the sake of her daughter. She sighed, turning to face Mitchie, making up her mind.

"You better go and clean up the guest bedroom then." She said, chuckling when she saw Mitchie's eyes light up.

"You mean?" She said, wanting to hear her mom say the exact words so she was sure she was getting the right message.

"He can stay with us, but only for a short while and only if you behave and keep up with your school work, you understand? If it's possible that Shane is key to you getting your memory back then I guess we should do everything we can to give him that chance."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Mitchie squealed, throwing her arms around Connie in excitement. "You're the best mom ever!" She said before rushing up the stairs and into her room to grab her phone so she could tell Shane the new plan. She shouldn't be so excited about a stranger coming to live in her house, but she couldn't help herself. He was _the_ Shane Grey after all.

"I may be the most insane mom ever." Connie muttered to herself as she switched the dishwasher on.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Thank you so much for allowing me to stay in your home Mrs Torres." Shane said politely as he entered the house a few hours later, suitcase in hand.

"Call me Connie." She instructed him, "And it's no problem, I should be thanking you for offering to help my daughter." Mitchie, wanting to avoid an awkward conversation between Shane and her mother, grabbed Shane's suitcase and lugged it up the stairs, indicating he should follow.

"This is your room." She told him as she opened the door to reveal a fairly small room with a double bed, wardrobe and chest of drawers. "Sorry it's not much."

"It's like being home again, I like it." He said, taking a seat on the bed. His old room at his parents house had been like this, on the small side, with plain walls and a floor of almost the exact same colour. "Your family are being too good to me Mitch."

"Seems you got on mom's good side during summer. Wise move." Shane laughed as he remembered spending most of the last morning of camp in the kitchen helping Connie clear up, just so he could spend more time with Mitchie.

"How about you show me around this little town of yours then? Fill me in on all the need to know gossip." Shane suggested.

"Only if you tell me about Camp Rock."

"Deal." Shane agreed as they walked back downstairs.

"Mom, we're nipping out, we'll be back in a bit." Mitchie called into the kitchen before grabbing her keys and following Shane out the door. "There's not much around here." She admitted as they wandered towards the town centre. "It's no Hollywood, that's for sure."

They walked in silence for a while, neither quite sure what to say. Mitchie pointed out a small park nearby filled with small kids and their parents.

"We've hung out there quite a lot over the last few months. It may not be the coolest place but I'm still a big kid at heart." Mitchie explained, "Beyond that hedge is a really pretty lake and you can hire boats and stuff to go out on it."

"Can you hire canoes?" Shane asked hopefully.

"Yeah, but they don't seem as fun as pedalos, which may be tiring but are a lot of fun, especially for racing."

"Canoes can be good fun too, especially when you go in circles." Shane wasn't sure how obvious he was going to have to be about things from their past, but from the blank look she was giving him he assumed it would be a bit more than he was.

When they got into town Mitchie took them to her favourite little cafe, claiming they did the best hot chocolate ever inside. They took a seat at a small table in the window and scanned the menus. The cafe was small, built inside an old cottage. It had a wood burning fire, going even in the summer due to the rubbish English weather. It had wooden floors and oak beams covered the ceiling. It was quaint, traditional and one of Mitchie's favourite places to visit on a dull day.

"Hey Mitch, you want your usual?" A petite red head asked coming over to their table. Mitchie nodded and the girl jotted down her order before turning to Shane. "And who's this charming young fella?" Shane glanced up from his menu with his trademark smile and the girl gasped. "Er, Mitch," the girl whispered, "you are aware that _the_ Shane Grey is sat opposite you, right?" Mitchie laughed and confirmed she was well aware of that fact.

"He's an old family friend who's staying with us for a while." She explained, creating the lie off the top of her head, having already realised she'd need some explanation for his presence if she was going to be out and about with him.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" The girl asked, rather surprised by this development.

"Amnesia Becs, I didn't remember and my parents forgot to tell me, as per usual."The girl nodded in understanding before turning back to Shane, returning to professional waitress mode.

"What can I get for you?"

"A large hot chocolate and a warm chocolate brownie with cream," he ordered, "I'm giving up on the diet for once." It had been all over the press that since his summer spent in the great outdoors Shane had become obsessed with healthy eating and going on hikes. In truth, he couldn't resist indulging his sweet truth, even when he was trying to look good for his fans; he just worked a bit harder on the exercise when he gave in to temptation.

"I'll bring it right over." Bes said, before disappearing back behind the counter.

"That's Becki, she and I met the first day after I left the hospital. It was nice to get to know someone who knew less about me than me. Quite a rarity for the first few weeks after the accident." Mitchie said. She'd spent many hours sat in the cafe talking to Becki about the most random of topics, from music and films to cheese and biscuits. They'd formed quite a close friendship, yet rarely saw each other outside of the cafe.

They ate and drank their purchases, holding a continuous conversation covering camp times and Mitchie's life in England (what she could remember of it.) She told him more about Tia, how she was her main friend, and Shane told her all about the summer he met Nate and Jason. Though she already knew most of the story, having read it on their website it was nice to hear it from a first person point of view, and she gained some extra information.

"We found him sitting in a tree one day, about halfway through camp. We were supposed to be rehearsing for the camp fire jam but Jase never turned up. When we asked him what he was doing, it turned out he'd found a bird's nest and had spent over an hour in the tree whistling to the baby birds." Shane said, recalling one of his favourite memories from his first summer at his uncle's camp.

When they'd finished and paid Mitchie walked Shane to a place that was a very big part of her English life, right on the outskirts of the town. Though it seemed like nothing special, just a junction of a road, it help deep meaning for her.

"You see that streetlight over there?" She asked pointing straight ahead of her to the lamp standing at the edge of the crossing.

"The one that's leaning over at an odd angle?" Shane checked.

"Yeah. That's where my car finally came to a halt that night." She explained. "Sometimes, when it really gets to me that I can't remember my life, I come here and sit against that post and just try to force myself to remember." Her parents didn't know she did, in fact they'd refused to tell her where it happened so she wouldn't revisit it, but Tia had filled her in and taken her there only a week after she left the hospital, when there had still been pieces of car laying on the pavement.

"Does it work?" Shane asked.

"Once or twice I've remembered glimpses of things, never anything that's clear or makes sense. It's more like watching a very brief clip of my life in fast forward. Then I get this really bad headache and the memory stops." Mitchie said as she led him across the road. The headaches were a frequent annoyance to her, but they were also a sign that she was on the brink of remembering something.

"How did it happen?" Shane asked. He was unsure if she'd be comfortable talking about it but his intrigue got the better of him.

"The accident?" Shane nodded. They both took a seat at the base of the lamp post, "I only know what my parents told me and what I read in the local paper. It's the one memory the doctors say I will never fully recall." She said before leaning back against the post. "It's a long story." She warned him.

"We've got time." He wanted to know what had happened to the girl who stole his heart.

She sighed, recollecting the memories of that night.

**AN: I'll be uploading more either tomorrow (if I get lots of reviews over night – please?) or Wednesday, depending on how my schedule works out. If you have time please check out my other stories: **_**Who I Am**_** and its sequel **_**Introducing Me. **_**Thanks once again for all the reviews, story alerts and favourites, you're support is amazing.**


	6. The Accident

**AN: This chapter is dedicated to Navybrat4 because it's her birthday today! I know, two chapters in two days, its madness. Also, so everyone knows, I am attempting to get this story done by the 10****th**** of September because I go on holiday that day, so you may have a large amount of updates in the next few days.**

**The songs in this are This Is Me and Lo Que Soy both by Demi Lovato. Check them out. **

Chapter 6 – The Accident

_Flashback:_

_Mitchie sat in her room staring at her phone. She wanted to call him, tell him how much living in England sucked and that all she wanted do was get back to America. But she'd had an hour long text conversation with him yesterday where she'd told her how great everything was, how she'd made lots of friends. Maybe she'd lied a little. He may not be the jerk of the pop world anymore but he was still a superstar, he didn't need to know all about her ridiculously dull rubbish life._

_She sighed, staring out the window. She missed Dallas. This little town just didn't compare, though the snow softly fluttering to the ground outside was a slight improvement._

_Her eyes landed on the Connect 3 calendar hanging on her wall, Shane's face staring back at her. Being stuck in her room with nothing to do, whilst her parents were busily getting ready for a romantic evening which would leave her home, alone, for yet another night, was definitely not how she'd envisioned spending Valentine 's Day. She could have been in New York watching Shane performing on stage; he'd offered her two free tickets and told her she could stay at their family home with them for a few days, but her parents hadn't agreed, claiming she was too young to go away on her own and that they didn't have the time to go with her. Since they'd made the decision Mitchie had made sure they were very aware she wasn't happy about it._

_She sighed again, frustrated, growing intensely bored of her rooms four walls. She grabbed her jacket and left the room._

"_Mitchie?" Her mom's voice echoed through the house almost as soon as Mitchie's hand grabbed the keys. _

"_What?" She snapped back. Before moving to England she'd gotten on well with Connie, better than most of her friends got on with their parents, now they barely spoke without it developing into an argument. Mitchie could see it was upsetting her mom but she was still so bitter about having to leave everything she knew behind, she wasn't ready to fix things yet._

"_Are you going out?" Connie asked, walking into the hallway._

"_Yes." Mitchie said as she glanced in the mirror, pulling her hair into a ponytail, not listening to what Connie was saying._

"_The weather's meant to get worse tonight and there are warnings about ice on the roads. Be careful and drive slow okay?" Mitchie nodded. "Mitchie I'm serious. The conditions out there will be dangerous and you're not used to driving on the other side of the road. Accidents happen." Connie warned._

"_Mom, I know how to drive, I don't need you telling me how to do it." Mitchie said, "I'll be back later." She slammed the door on her way out, knowing it would wind her mom up. She shivered, realising just how cold it was as tiny white specs settled softly on her dark brown hair. She climbed into her car, turning the heating as high as it could go. As she sat behind the wheel with nowhere to go, Mitchie wondered how long it would take to get to the airport in the snow._

_She pulled out the driveway, deciding to just drive and see where to road took her. She needed to get away and clear her head. She drove around for an hour before parking at a local play park. She'd come here a lot over the past few months, enjoying sitting on the swings whilst thinking. It was there she had written most of her recent songs. She took a seat on the closest swing in the deserted area before pulling her IPod from her pocket, selecting the latest Connect 3 album and turning up the volume. If she couldn't be with Shane, she'd at least listen to him. _

_She sat there for a while ignoring the snow gathering at her feet. The weather was slowly turning nasty and had she been at home Mitchie would have seen the severe weather warnings of treacherous driving conditions developing in her area._

_Her phone vibrated, bringing her out of her Connect 3 trance. She smiled as she saw Shane's name on the screen. _

'_**Happy Valentine's day! I hope you're having a lovely day over in Ye Olde England'**__. She chuckled quietly, imagining him attempting to do an English accent. She text him back wishing him good luck for the show. As she hit send she realised it was almost ten O'clock and decided it was probably time to be getting home._

_As she walked to her car she slid, almost ending on the ground. It surprised her how icy it had become and she started to wonder if she perhaps should have listened to her mom. Driving away she turned the CD player on, blasting the copy of Peggy's single the Shane had sent her, as loud as it would go. She drove back towards her house, unaware that the journey would change her life._

_End Flashback_

"The roads were a nightmare; apparently there were quite a few crashes that night." Mitchie explained, surprised by how intently Shane was listening. "They weren't sure exactly what happened but they think I was driving round that corner," she pointed to her left, "and lost control of the car because of some black ice. There was another car coming the other way which also lost control and the two of us slid at a fast pace towards each other. This lamppost is where we met. I got here first and this," She pointed to her head, "is the result."

"What about the other person?" Shane asked.

"They got a few cuts and a broken arm and apologised to me a ridiculous number of times, but apart from that they were fine. I haven't seen them since the day I woke up." Mitchie explained as she pulled her knees up to her chest. Shane wrapped his arm around her shoulders comfortingly.

"We're you okay, apart from the whole memory loss thing?"

"I had two broken ribs and some cuts and stuff, was in a coma for a week, oh and gained my lovely scar." She moved her long sweeping fringe out of the way of her forehead revealing a small, pale, smooth patch of skin. "That's thanks to my car's windscreen." She explained. Shane slowly raised his hand, gently brushing his fingers against the scar causing Mitchie to shiver from the touch of his skin.

"Are you cold?" He asked, misreading her reaction, wrapping his arm a little tighter around her. She blushed, not used to the close contact.

"I'm fine." Mitchie said, shaking her fringe back in place. "Shane, how close were we at camp?" She asked, getting a sense things had been more serious then Shane had let on.

"We were pretty close. We had a bit of a fight at one point but we sorted it out. We spent a lot of the summer together, so it's not surprising we were good friends by the end." Shane replied. He wanted to tell her how much she meant to him but Connie had warned him not to give her too much information in one go and having a pop star declare his true feelings for her may be a little too much.

They eventually headed back to Mitchie's house, realising that sitting by the lamppost was getting her memory nowhere.

"Mitchie, have you done your homework?" Connie asked when the two of them arrived home.

"I've still got some music to do." Mitchie replied as she grabbed a freshly baked cookie from the tray. Her mom was constantly cooking on the weekends and so there was always some form of treat to much upon.

"You better go do it then." Connie said as she lifted another tray from the oven.

"But mom, I can't just leave Shane sitting here on his own." Mitchie reasoned. She really didn't want to do her music work. Mr Ditune had given her song back with a few suggested changes and instructions for her to find some lyrics for the bridge or he would have to drop her grade. Problem was, she still had no ideas for the lyrics and it was starting to really frustrate her.

"I'm sure the pop star can find something to do." Shane felt awkward sat between the two Torres women as they talked about him.

"It's cool Mitch," he said, "I need to ring Nate anyway, reassure him that I'm still alive and stuff." Nate had been calling him almost every hour and Shane knew he would continue to do so if he didn't call back.

Mitchie sighed before giving in and trudging upstairs. Taking a seat at the piano in her bedroom she pulled out her music book and stared at the blank lyrics section.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Nate, stop talking and listen." Shane said after listening to his friend witter on for a while about how he should get back to America this instant. The boy on the other end of the line suddenly went silent. "Isn't it better that I'm here with her, helping her, than there with you talking about her?" Shane heard his friend sigh in resignation.

"Okay, you make a good point. But Shane, you've got to be careful, don't let yourself get hurt. There's a strong chance she'll never remember, almost 50% of people with retrograde amnesia live the rest of their lives without recalling their memories from before they developed it." Nate explained.

"Someone's done their research." Shane said. That was Nate's nature, if there was something he didn't understand or didn't know about he would always go and find out everything he could. "Nate, if she never remembers that's sad but at least she will know me again. I would hate to never have her as a friend because I didn't try."

"Alright dude, if you're sure," Shane informed him that he was. He stood Mitchie's guest room looking around the walls. The clock caught his eye and with some quick calculations about the time difference he continued, "Weren't you supposed to be meeting Caitlyn like an hour ago?"

"Her flight got delayed, though I should probably head to the airport as she'll be in soon if she took off on time." Nate hadn't seen his girlfriend for over a month. To say he was excited to get to spend a few weeks with her was an understatement.

"Go see your lover girl and stop worrying about me. I'm older than you, I know how to take care of myself." Nate wasn't so sure he agreed but he let it go, ending the conversation before hanging up on his friend.

Shane had known Nate for four years now and it surprised him how little he had changed. It was just in his nature to worry. He sent Jason a quick text, knowing the older boy would be upset if he found out Shane had talked to Nate and not him (he didn't like to be left out) before deciding to go and see if Mitchie was done with her homework.

As he wandered down the hallway towards her room he could hear a piano being played. The tune was familiar and he smiled when he realised what it was. He opened the door quietly, not wanting to interrupt and listened to her sing for a few moments before joining in.

_This is real_

_This is me _

_I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be now_

_Gonna the light _

_Shine on me_

_Now I've found_

_Who I am_

_There's no way to hold it in_

_No more hiding who I wanna be_

_This is me._

Mitchie spun round, surprised at hearing another voice singing her song.

"You know the words?" She asked as he came and sat on her bed.

"You sung it at Camp Rock this summer; it's what inspired 'Gotta Find You'." Shane said, "I have to admit, I prefer it on piano."

"I'm the mystery girl?" Mitchie asked, her mouth hanging open in shock.

"The what?"

"At the concert you said someone in your life helped you write that song. I wondered who the mystery girl was." Mitchie said. Shane blushed in embarrassment. Though he knew she'd been at that show, it hadn't really clicked that it meant she'd heard his little speech about her.

"I overheard your song and it was good, reminded me of the stuff I used to write, don't let it go to your head Torres."

"I never would Grey." Mitchie joked. "I still have to finish it though, it's really frustrating me and I can't afford to drop a grade because I can't think of lyrics."

"What bit are you struggling with?" Shane asked. He knew the words to her song back to front, music too. He reckoned he could help.

Mitchie's fingers played the tune to the bridge hoping that, as he'd heard the song before, he'd be able to tell her what words she'd used in the past. Shane couldn't help but laugh when he realised what section she was playing. She stopped, confused by his reaction.

"What?" She asked, feeling a little hurt.

"Sorry it's just you're struggling with the one bit I never got to hear." Shane explained.

"Why didn't you hear it?"

"The first time I listened to it you stopped playing before you got to it, that was when you became 'the girl with the voice'" Mitchie gave him a questioning look, "I'll explain later. The second time I, well, I kinda interrupted you and started singing my own words." He admitted guiltily. "But the audience loved it, so it was okay." They weren't the only ones, Shane's manager had been rather impressed and if she hadn't moved to England he was pretty sure he could have persuaded label to record it.

"Audience?" Mitchie asked. Since the accident the largest group of people she'd performed in front of was the 15 other students in her music class, and even that freaked her out.

"Yeah you performed at 'The Final Jam' which is the big end of camp concert with like, 300 people watching. You were really good, if a little nervous." He said.

"I can't imagine me doing that. I have serious stage fright, not great when you want to be a musician, I know." She admitted.

"Shall I tell you a secret?" Shane suggested. Mitchie nodded.

"I used to have dreadful stage fright, people would have to physically drag me on stage and when I got off again I'd usually throw up." Mitchie stared at him in shock. She would never have guessed that from his performance the other night. "But you can get past it, you just have to challenge yourself and then it gets easier." Mitchie nodded, though she doubted she'd ever be brave enough to take to the stage in the first place.

"So, how did you interrupt me?" Mitchie asked, returning them to their earlier conversation.

"I'll show you." Shane crossed the room and took a seat beside her at the piano. It was the only song Shane knew how to play on piano, after forcing Nate to teach him it when Mitchie had left. He sang his words slightly adjusted to her tune.

_You're the voice I hear inside my head _

_The reason that I'm singing_

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you_

_You're the missing piece I need_

_The song inside of me_

_I need to find you_

_I gotta find you._

"She said it sounded like that." Mitchie muttered, more to herself than Shane.

"Who?"

"My friend Tia, from after the concert." Shane nodded, indicating he knew who she meant. "Well I can't use that, it's meant to be an original." She sighed, realising she was still stuck.

"I could give you official rights to use it?" Shane suggested. Mitchie just shook her head. They both sat silently thinking for a few minutes. Shane looked around her room when something caught his eyes. "Spanish." He stated, walking over to look at the postcard on the nearby wall showing a map of the European country. "Do you still speak it?" She'd told him all about how she'd grown up bilingual as a child, but he didn't know if the amnesia had wiped that knowledge.

"Surprisingly, yes, but I don't see how that's going to fix my song." She just wanted to get it done, not have a conversation about a random foreign language.

"You could sing my lyrics, but in Spanish. You may have to change it slightly to make it fit, but it might work." Shane said uncertainly, smiling as he saw Mitchie's face light up.

"Shane, you're a genius! Plus, my teacher doesn't speak Spanish so he'll have no idea what the lyrics are." Mitchie squealed in excitement at finally having a way to finish her song before grabbing some paper and writing down first the English lyrics and then translating them to Spanish. "Maybe the chorus after could be Spanish too, then I end on English." She quickly wrote the chorus too before standing and returning to her piano, putting the lyrics next to the music. "Okay, you have to tell me what you think and be totally honest. I'll just sing it from the bridge." She took a deep breath before playing.

_Eres esa voz que habita en mí_

_Por eso estoy cantando_

_Quiero encontrarte_

_Voy a encontrarte_

_Eres lo que falta en mi_

_Canción dentro de mí_

_Quiero encontrarte_

_Voy a encontrarte_

_Lo que soy, es real_

_Soy exactamente la que debo ser hoy_

_Deja que la luz, brille en mí_

_No hay manera de ocultar_

_Lo que siempre he querido ser_

_Lo que soy_

_This is me_

_Now I've found_

_Who I am_

_There's no way to hold it in_

_Now more hiding who I wanna be_

_This is me_

"Mitchie, that's amazing." Shane commented as she finished, stunned by the way her voiced sounded in Spanish, causing Mitchie to turn bright red.

"Thanks." She played it through one more time before smiling proudly, happy she'd finally finished.


	7. Tia's Truth

**AN: I know it's taken me ages to update but I've been crazy busy and unable to access my laptop for a few days. Hope you like the next chapter, more reviews makes for a happy writer, just saying!**

**Chapter 7 – Tia's Truth**

Shane yawned as he sat on the sofa with Mitchie later that evening. After touring for many months, the lack of sleep he had endured was finally catching up with him.

"Aw, is the rock star sleepy?" Mitchie teased.

"Pop star." Shane replied, quoting Mitchie's old joke, though she didn't realise it, instead she responded with a look of complete confused. "Never mind." He muttered, saddened their private joke was only his now.

"Mitchie," Connie walked into the living room having noticed the time, "It's getting late and you have school in the morning. You should be getting to bed." Mitchie sighed, knowing her mom was right and that it was pointless trying to persuade her to allow her to stay up any later. "Shane, I'm sure you haven't had a bedtime in quite a while but if you don't mind, I have to suggest you head to bed too, it's only fair." Connie said as diplomatically as she could.

"Mom! I can't believe you just said that. You are so embarrassing." Mitchie groaned, causing Shane to laugh at her reaction

"It's okay Mitch, it's actually quite nice to have someone suggest I go to bed. It really hasn't happened in quite a while." Though he was nineteen, and would never admit it to anyone, Shane missed his parents. He hadn't seen them in quite some time, refusing to visit them during his 'jerk' phase, and then not having time between camp and the tour. If he was forced to tell the truth he would admit he was scared to go home. He didn't think his family would welcome him with open arms.

"Okay well, goodnight." Mitchie said, giving him an awkward hug. Though she felt closer to him after today, she was still uncertain how to act around him.

"Night Mitchie, sleep tight." He said as she climbed the stairs leaving him alone with Connie. "I want to thank you for letting me stay, it means a lot. If there's anything I can do just let me know." He said, feeling very grateful to the woman stood in front of him.

"Shane, you're doing enough already just being here. I know you'll help Mitchie, even if it takes a while. I should be thanking you for taking the time to be with her." Connie replied, causing Shane to blush. Connie sensed there was more to the band members' presence in her house than just friendship and, whilst most mothers would be overly protective of their daughter's when it came to guys' attention, she couldn't be happier about it.

"It's no problem, trust me." He said before yawning again. "I guess I should be off to bed. Goodnight Connie." He surprised her by giving her a brief hug.

"Night Shane." She responded before watching him walk up the stairs. Checking the time again she realised her husband would be home soon. How he would react to the new house guest, she wasn't sure.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Connie, why is there a world famous pop star in our guest room?" Steve asked as he entered the kitchen the next morning. He'd been late home the night before after a hardware emergency, meaning Connie hadn't had a chance to explain what was going on.

"He's staying with us." Connie explained simply, not looking up from the pancake batter she was mixing.

"What! Connie, why didn't you discuss this with me first?" Steve said, unimpressed. "Why is he staying with us?"

"He wants to help Mitchie." Connie replied as she added blueberries to the mix, knowing Mitchie preferred them to plain pancakes. "Steve, we need to try and make her remember. Everything we've tried so far has been unsuccessful; if Shane is the way to solve the issue then I'll happily let him stay here as long as he wants to achieve it." Steve walked over to his wife and wrapped his arms around her.

"It'll happen one day Connie, we just have to give her time. The doctor said..."

"I don't care what the doctor said!" Connie interrupted, snapping suddenly. "I want my daughter back."

Shane paused outside the kitchen, hidden from view by the door. He didn't realise how much everything with Mitchie had affected her mom.

"We will. We just need to be patient. Things could have been much worse."

"I know." Connie said sadly. She couldn't bear to think what the consequences of the accident could have been. She sighed before continuing, "I can't help wondering how different things could have been if we hadn't moved. Was this job really worth everything it caused?" Connie aired her frequently considered question. Since the day of the accident she wished they'd never gone to England.

"Things would have been different, but it was your dream Connie, we made the right decision, no matter what occurred as a result." Steve said, stealing a blueberry from the packet, earning himself a small slap from his wife.

"What if Shane can't help her?" Connie asked.

"I'll do everything I can to try." Shane said as he walked awkwardly into the room, making his presence known.

"Oh, er, morning Shane." Connie said, turning around to look at the teenager, wondering how much of the previous conversation he'd heard. "You remember Steve, Mitchie's father, I'm sure you two met after Final Jam."

"Nice to meet you again sir." Shane said politely as he shook Steve's hand.

"You too." Steve said before he took as seat at the table as Connie added the last few blueberries to the mix.

"Is there anything I can do to help Connie?" Shane asked, feeling guilty still for being allowed to stay for free, but doing nothing to help out.

"No, I just need to fry these now." Connie explained, indicating to the batter. She whisked it a bit more before putting it in the fridge to rest for a few moments. She told Shane he should take a seat before walking into the hallway, yelling up the stairs;

"Mitchie, up!" Her call was surprisingly loud. Shane and Steve both chuckled when they heard the loud groan in response, it was clear the seventeen year old really didn't want to be woken, before a drum beat could clearly be heard.

"It's her own song." Steve explained as they heard the music, which indicated to her parents that she had gotten out of bed. "She plays it every morning to help wake herself up."

Connie returned to the kitchen and began cooking the pancakes. With immaculate timing Mitchie arrived at the table just as the pancakes were served.

"Smells good." She said, taking a seat and helping herself to a few.

"How many outfits this morning?" Connie asked, taking the last chair at the table. She knew her daughter's morning routine well and this question had become a family joke.

"Three." Mitchie admitted sheepishly. Every day it took her a few attempts to decide what would be best outfit to wear to school. Sometimes it took a surprisingly long time and her record was trying on fifteen different combinations before coming downstairs.

"That must be a new lowest record, surely?" Steve teased. Shane sat there smiling as he watched the family interact. He had forgotten what it was like to have breakfast all together.

The morning meal passed with simple, gentle chit chat and soon enough it was time for Mitchie to head to school.

"Don't forget you have a doctor's appointment at half four. I'll pick you up at the end of the day." Since the accident Mitchie had been forced to share the car with her mother, unable to afford another one of her own. On the days her mom had to use the car for work she was forced to get lifts from her parents.

"Okay mom. I'll see you later." She gave her a quick hug then turned to Shane. "You sure you'll be okay on your own all day?" She felt bad that he was stuck in England because of her and now he had to spend his days all alone whilst she disappeared to the hell that was school.

"I'll be fine, I have things to do." Shane promised her.

"Come on Mitch, we'll be late." Steve called from the door. He was going to drop her off on his way to work.

"Have a good day." Shane said as he gave her a gentle goodbye hug.

"It's school, that's unlikely." Mitchie replied before giving a final farewell and rushing out the door.

"So what are your plans for the rest of the day?" Connie asked as Shane helped her fill the dishwasher with the breakfast stuff.

"I'm going to pick up a hire car. This town's nice but I'd like to be able to go explore the local area a bit more." He explained.

"You can always borrow our cars Shane." Connie said.

"That's kind of you but I honestly don't mind hiring one, it's no problem." He replied.

_CR-CR-CR_

Mitchie hated school on Mondays. It meant there was a whole week until the next weekend and she had most of her worst lessons too. As she came out of maths class, her last class of the day, she was relieved, more so this week than usual. Tia had been missing all day, leaving Mitchie more or less alone, plus with the arrival of the end of day she knew she'd seen Shane shortly, a fact which brightened her mood considerably.

"Oi, Torres." Mitchie groaned as she heard Steffi's voice echo through the corridor. She turned to see her enemy surrounded by her whole gang, all of whom were dressed in similar outfits: stiletto heels, short skirts and different coloured vest tops (each minion had their own colour). The five girls spread out behind Steffi as she came to a halt in front of Mitchie. "Rumour had it you've got a pop star in your house."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Mitchie said. She wasn't sure Shane really wanted everyone knowing about him staying with her and she wasn't the bragging type, she preferred to keep things to herself.

"See Tia, I told you she was lying." Tia emerged from within the group, dressed in a similar manner to the rest of the clones.

"Tia? What are you doing?" Mitchie asked the only girl she thought was her friend, hurt clear in her eyes. Tia just looked silently at the floor.

"Isn't that sweet!" Steffi exclaimed "She actually believe you were her friend Ti." The other clones laughed. Mitchie looked at Tia, tears forming in her eyes. "Did you really think someone like Tia would be friends with someone like you? She's rich and you," Steffi looked Mitchie up and down and scoffed, "you're just a cook's daughter." A tear dropped from Mitchie's eye as Steffi's insult hurt more than it should.

"Why?" Mitchie asked, staring at Tia. Her supposed friend looked up and Mitchie could see the conflict in her eyes.

"Go on Ti, tell her." Steffi instructed.

"You forgot everything; it was too good an opportunity to miss." Tia said quietly, though it didn't sound like she believed her own words.

"You just fell for it, hook line and sinker. It was just precious how gullible you were. 'Oh Mitchie! I was so worried about you!'" Steffi imitated the words Tia had said that first day at the hospital.

"What about everything I told you?" Mitchie couldn't believe Tia had done this to her.

"All your precious secrets? Well, the ones you could remember. They gave us hours of laughter; we were very appreciative of the enjoyment you provided us with. And your dream of becoming a world famous singer?" Steffi laughed and the clones quickly followed suit, "I can't believe how deluded you are, it would be adorable if you weren't seventeen. I mean come on, you're fat, ugly," Steffi continued to insult her, not nothing how her gang had fallen silent behind her in shock, "not to mention the fact that to be a singer you have to actually be able to _sing,_ which you definitely can't."

"Steffi..." One of the minions tried to stop her.

"Shut up Dana, can't you see I'm in the middle of something?" Steffi snapped.

"Yes Dana, be quiet, I'd quite like to see where she's going with this." A male voice said. Mitchie spun around, feeling incredibly uncomfortable when she saw a certain floppy haired superstar stood behind her.

"Shane, what are you doing here?" She hissed, knowing Steffi would become even more unbearable with the knowledge that he was around.

"Mitchie I though you told us you didn't know _the_ Shane Grey. Why would you lie like that?" Steffi said in a fake friendly tone, hoping it would wind Shane up to know Mitchie had lied about him, as she tottered forward, offering Shane her hand. "I'm Steffi Manoulus. It's such a pleasure to meet you."

"_So_ like Tess." Shane muttered under his breath. Ignoring Steffi's hand he turned to Mitchie. "Your mom asked me to come get you, you ready to go?" Mitchie nodded silently, not trusting her voice to keep her sadness a secret. She didn't want him to know what had just occurred. Shane wrapped his arm around her shoulders and gave the other girls a quick nod before leading her out of the school.

When they arrive at Shane's hire car Mitchie gasped in shock and behind her she could hear six similar reactions. Steffi and her gang had followed them out, though Tia was nowhere to be seen.

"Subtle isn't in your vocabulary is it?" Mitchie asked as Shane opened the door of the deep red convertible Jaguar XKR.

"It's a good car. I can't be seen driving some Ford Focus or whatever, I am Shane Grey after all." He reasoned whilst helped her into the leather passenger seat. She glanced back up at the school, noticing the look of envy on Steffi's face. She knew this was going to cause further trouble.


	8. You're Not Invisible

**AN: So it's Wednesday and I decided to give you another chapter whilst I take a break from writing later chapters which you won't read for a while. 80 reviews is so incredible, any chance you can help me get to 100? You'd be the best readers ever if you did!**

Chapter 8 – You're not invisible

"What was all that back there?" Shane asked once they were on their way to the doctor's. Connie had been asked to stay and work late on a key client's event and, as she knew he would be free, had asked Shane to take Mitchie to her appointment. He was happy to oblige as he wanted to know more about her condition.

"It was nothing, honestly." Mitchie lied, not wanting to get into it.

"Mitch, I know it wasn't 'nothing', I heard what she said. Why would she treat you like that?" He was concerned about her.

"Because that's what she does, she isn't happy unless she's insulting someone else. It's really not that big a deal." Shane had seen the tears in Mitchie's eyes so he knew she wasn't being fully truthful with him. "Does this thing have a CD player?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah and a cassette player with one of those IPod adapter things." He was very pleased with his car selection. He noticed Mitchie giving him a pleading look and sighed jokingly. "Yes, you can plug yours in." He said. Mitchie cheered before grabbing her IPod from her bag and attaching it where Shane told her to. Within seconds it started playing, Shane's voice filling the car. Mitchie blushed, quickly changing the track.

"Hey! I was listening to that." Shane objected.

"I thought people were supposed to hate listening to themselves." Mitchie replied as her favourite Kelly Clarkson song started to play.

"Well I happen to like my own voice." Shane joked.

"Jerk." Mitchie muttered.

"What did you say?" Shane asked, surprised to hear her response.

"Oh, erm, nothing, sorry." She apologised. She hadn't meant for him to hear. Shane smiled sadly; she would never have apologised for that in the past, in fact she would have said it numerous times just to tease him.

They sat in silence for a few moments until the chorus rolled around when Shane started singing:

_Don't waste your time _

_Trying to fix_

_What I wanna erase_

_What I need to forget_

_Don't waste your time one me my friend_

_Friend what does that even mean_

_I don't want your hand_

_You'll only pull me down_

_So save your breath_

_Don't waste your song_

_On me_

_On me_

_Don't waste your time._

"You know Kelly Clarkson?" Mitchie asked when he stopped. She wasn't the kind of artist Mitchie expected him to know and to find out he knew the lyrics was even more surprising.

"A friend got me into her." Shane admitted as he glanced at the friend he spoke of. In one of their conversations after camp Mitchie had told him all about her love for Ms Clarkson. When he'd been told her favourite songs Shane had made sure to listen to, and learn the lyrics of, every one of them.

He started to sing again and this time Mitchie joined in.

_Don't waste your song_

_On me_

_On me_

_Don't waste your time._

Shane stopped, listening to Mitchie sing alone.

_And you call_

_And you talk_

_And you're trying_

_Trying to get in_

_But it's over_

She stopped suddenly, realising he had too. She blushed, embarrassed.

"You have an amazing voice. You need to show other people your talent, they deserve to hear it." Shane complimented her.

"You're just saying that so I let you stay in my house longer." Mitchie replied, not believing him.

"No, I'm seriously not. I think you've got a good enough voice to get signed." He admitted. Mitchie focused her attention out the window. She wanted to believe she could have everything she dreamed of but she didn't. All she could think of was what Steffi had said earlier. She'd been tricked by what people said before; she didn't want to let it happen again.

"What about the talent show?" Shane suggested. He'd seen a poster advertising it on one of the school walls when he went to find her.

"What about it?" Mitchie asked.

"You should take part." Shane said as if it was obvious.

"Never going to happen." Mitchie replied, "Stage fright, remember."

"It could be the perfect opportunity to challenge yourself." He was trying to help; he hated seeing her doubt herself and wanted her to get the chance to prove the school bitch wrong.

"It isn't going to happen Shane, just drop it." Mitchie snapped, effectively ending the conversation.

_CR-CR-CR_

They sat staring at the bleached white walls in the doctor's reception, waiting for Mitchie's name to be called. Shane stared at the poster in front of him, reading all about the symptoms of meningitis.

"Why is it they put up posters in here that just make you feel worse and get all paranoid that you're seriously ill?" He asked. It was one thing he'd noticed in all doctors worldwide, they always liked to make you freak out while you wait. Mitchie shrugged in reply, her attention focus on her hands in her lap. She hated going to the doctors. Shane glanced at her in concern before taking one of her hands in his. She looked up at him uncertainly. "It'll be okay, it's just a check up, nothing big." He said giving her a reassuring squeeze of the hand.

"Thanks." She whispered back. Her mom had told her it was something she'd always been nervous about, even when she was little. It was the one thing she wished her amnesia had erased.

"Mitchie Torres?" A friendly looking receptionist called, indicating it was her turn. She stood, taking a deep break. She'd never had to go in alone. She felt pathetic that at the age of seventeen she was still scared. She looked over her shoulder at Shane, trying to make a decision.

"Shane." She said in a whisper, unsure how he would react to what she was going to ask. He stood up and took her hand again.

"I'll be right there with you." He said, as if he'd read her mind. The two of them walked into the doctor's office together. Shane was glad she trusted him enough to reply on him for support.

Mitchie smiled in relief. This guy, who, as far as she was aware, she barely knew, just seemed to understand her. She didn't know why she felt so safe around him, but she was glad she did.

"Hello Miss Torres, it's nice to see you again." Dr Ralph greeted. He was a kind man, with slightly greying hair and a comforting smile. Mitchie had found herself in his office once a month for the last six months since she left the hospital, so she had gotten to know him rather well.

"Hi." She responded quietly as she took a seat. His familiar face didn't calm her nerves at all.

"You must be Shane; Connie called and said you'd be accompanying her daughter." Dr Ralph said, shaking his hand before indicating he should take a seat too. "So Mitchie, how have you been feeling this past month?"

"Alright, no difference really." Mitchie replied with her usual answer.

"Any flashes? Headaches?" The doctor asked, jotting down some notes. Often Mitchie's answer was 'no' but this time she actually had an incident to discuss with him.

"I did have one. I saw someone performing on stage and it made my head feel like it was going to explode." Mitchie explained whilst Shane sat listening intensely. She hadn't told him his appearance had caused this reaction. "Then I started getting these flashes of a memory, like watching really short clips of a movie. I could remember this stage and the colours green and white and this name, but it wasn't the name of the girl on stage." Shane was suddenly lost, realising it hadn't been him who had caused this.

"That's very interesting." Dr Ralph said, making more notes. "Do you remember the name?" Mitchie thought for a moment.

"The girl on stage was Margaret Dupree, but the name I remembered was Peggy." Shane couldn't help the jealousy he felt at the fact Mitchie could remember the final jam winner but not him.

"That's her nickname." He blurted out, all the attention in the room focusing on him.

"You know this girl?" Dr Ralph asked.

"Yeah, she opened for us on tour. She was at Camp Rock with Mitchie and me last summer." Shane explained. He noticed the pleased look on the doctor's face and felt proud he could help.

"So her name really is Peggy?" Mitchie asked, glad to be able to make sense of the strange moment at the show.

"That's what everyone at camp called her until she used her real name to perform at final jam." Shane explained for both of them.

"So you knew Mitchie before the accident?" The doctor asked. Apart from her parents, he hadn't met anyone in Mitchie's life who knew her from before she could remember.

"I met her last summer. I'm staying with her for a while to try and help her remember." Shane explained. Mitchie smiled up at him and the doctor sensed that, though neither teenager may have realised it yet, there was more than just the regaining of memories in this for them.

"That's excellent. Sometimes all it takes is the right person to bring it all back." Dr Ralph had seen it happen a few times before, patients would struggle for months, even years, with amnesia, then they would meet someone from the past and the memories would come flooding back. Over the last six months he had grown fond of Mitchie and he desperately wanted her to remember who she used to be. If the boy sat beside her was the cure, he'd be more than pleased.

"Perhaps you can fill us in on the memory Mitchie has pieces of?" He suggested to Shane, thinking that, if Shane knew both Mitchie and Peggy at the same time, he may have been at the event Mitchie was describing.

"I might be able to." Shane thought back over what he could remember of camp. If there was a stage it was probably a jam, and she remembered Peggy, not Margaret, so it wasn't final jam. He smiled as he worked it out. "It was quite early in the summer, pyjama jam I believe. You and Peggy were wearing the same outfit; a green hoodie and white shorts. You were going to perform together with Ella and Tess. I left before you did though." Shane explained what he knew. "Last I saw you were having some argument with Tess," Mitchie sat quietly trying to remember, but it was blurry. Dr Ralph and Shane watched her carefully to see her reaction, but her face was blank.

"I can't remember it." Mitchie said sadly.

"That's okay, it's a start. You've made a step forward this month and that's a good thing." The doctor said encouragingly. Mitchie nodded, though she wasn't so sure she agreed. What was the point in remembering stuff when it still didn't make sense? "I want to book you in for another brain scan." The doctor continued. Shane flinched at the sudden tightening of the grip on his hand. He softly rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand in an attempt to comfort her. "I know you dislike them Mitchie but I think it would be beneficial to see if there have been any changes in the last six months."

"Fine." Mitchie muttered, knowing she didn't actually have a choice. The doctor typed away at his computer and booked her an appointment for two weeks time before turning back to them.

"Do you have any other questions? Either of you?" Mitchie shook her head but Shane spoke up.

"Are there any specific things I can do which may help her remember? You know, tell her about certain events or something?" He asked.

"Telling her things which have happened may help, but don't talk about too many at once as it may overwhelm her. Try and talk about key moments that may have had a big impact." The doctor explained, "apart from that it's just a matter of time."

"Can I go now?" Mitchie asked, wanting to get out of there.

"Yes, I think that's everything. Remember, if there's any big development or the headache's become more frequent or painful don't hesitate to call. I'll see you in two weeks." They said their goodbyes and then Mitchie dragged Shane out of the building as fast as she could, practically running back to the car.

"See, that wasn't so bad." Shane reasoned as they climbed in.

"Why do they have to make it smell so clinical?" Mitchie asked. The smell was the worst part of going to appointments in her opinion. When she'd been in hospital it had nearly driven her insane.

"I don't know, it's awful. If they made it smell of chocolate or something it would be a vast improvement." Shane said as he plugged his IPod in, choosing one of the unreleased Connect 3 songs he had stored on there. He thought Mitchie deserved a treat, and he really did enjoy listening to his own voice. He sang along as they drove back to her house, giving his favourite girl a mini performance.

_I can feel you all around_

_In the silence I hear the sound_

_Of your footsteps on the ground_

_And my heart slows down_

_So now I'm_

_I'm waiting for the moonlight_

_So I can find you in this perfect dream_

_Don't think that you can hide there in the shadows_

_Girl you're not invisible_

_You're all that I can see_

"Is that new?" Mitchie asked as Shane stopped singing for Nate's portion of the song. He nodded, making Mitchie smile. She felt special being given this opportunity to spend time with her favourite celebrity. The press had him wrong; he was one of the kindest people she'd ever met.

_See in the darkness_

_Believe we can make this_

_All we want is to be_

_We can stay here forever_

_Cos when were together_

_Stuck in this fantasy_

_I don't wanna leave_

_And I'll keep_

Mitchie joined in. Having only heard the chorus twice, she already knew the lyrics. She had a natural ability to pick them up, though she never had done it that quickly.

_Waiting for the moonlight_

_So I can find you in this perfect dream_

_Don't think that you can hide there in the shadows_

_Girl you're not invisible_

Shane sang the end of the song and as she watched him, Mitchie felt as if he was singing about her. His voice sounded so amazing in the privacy of the car, even better than on the recording.

_Girl you're not invisible_

_You're all that I can see_

_And my heart slows down._

He glanced over at her, noticing the blush creeping across her cheeks. She'd inspired him to write the song. That was how he felt, she was all around him, he couldn't see anyone but her when she was nearby. His thoughts would always drift back to their moonlit canoe ride, the silvery light illuminating her features, making her look so beautiful.

"You should release it." Mitchie said when the song had ended.

"We're thinking of it, we've got a few more written and we'll try them out when we get back to LA and record them in proper quality, we taped that on the bus." Shane replied. After a brief silence he continued, "So you remember Peggy and not me? I thought I made a better impression than that." He half joked. He really wished it was him she remembered but maybe her brain had its reasons for erasing him. If that was the case, was he doing the right thing by staying around?

"I wish I could remember you Shane. I have a sense you changed my life." Mitchie replied, certain her words were true. He'd been staying with her for less than three days and already he'd made a big impact.

**AN(2): In case you didn't realise the songs were 'Don't Waste Your Time' by Kelly Clarkson (amazing artist and song) and 'Invisible' from Jonas LA. I don't own them but you should given them a listen. **


	9. Earliest Memory

**AN: Just so everyone knows I will not be watching CR2 for a few weeks yet and so my stories will not be effect at all by the events in that film (though I may use songs from it and Jonas LA)**

Chapter 9 – Earliest Memory

The house was empty when they arrived home, with both of Mitchie's parents still at work. Mitchie gathered some food supplies before leading Shane into the living room where they both settled onto the sofa.

"What's the first thing you remember?" Shane asked out of the blue as he munched his way through a packet of crisps.

"I remember waking up in the hospital." Mitchie said, biting into a piece of chocolate.

"Was it weird suddenly not remembering anything?"

"It was scary." Mitchie admitted.

_Flashback_

"_Mitchie? Mitchie can you hear me? Steve, come quick I think she's waking up." A voice said nearby. Mitchie forced her eyes to open, blinded for a second by the sudden brightness. "Oh sweetie, thank God, we were so worried!" The tall brunette stood in front of her sighed in relief before wrapping her in a hug. Mitchie froze, unsure why this stranger was acting this way. Connie pulled back, looking at her daughter in concern. "Mitchie, hun, say something." Connie had missed the sound of her voice._

"_Who are you?" Mitchie asked in a barely audible whisper, the woman's face falling instantly._

"_I'll go get the doctor." Steve rushed from the room in search of someone who could tell them what was going on._

"_Mitchie, it's me, you're mom. Don't you recognise me?" Connie asked desperately. Mitchie felt so confused. If this woman was her mom then why didn't she remember her?_

"_I'm going to have to ask you a few questions and you need to answer them as best you can, okay?" A doctor asked, taking a seat beside her bed, clipboard in hand. Mitchie nodded slowly, uncertain she'd be able to answer them at all. "What is your name?"_

"_Michelle Elizabeth Torres." She knew that._

"_What is today's date?" Mitchie looked concerned. She tried to think of the last date she could remember, but none came to mind. It was just a dark blankness. _

"_I... I don't know." She replied, ashamed she couldn't answer something so simple. "What's going on?" She was scared._

"_I think you have retrograde amnesia." The doctor explained, turning to her parts to give them more information. "The crash most likely caused some slight brain damage. It's quite common in cases like this that patients will lose some, perhaps all, of their memories of the past. Whilst they can still remember their own name and skills they have learnt, like walking, talking and such, they completely forget people, places and events." Her parents listened intently, trying to make sense of what he was telling them. _

"_Will she get the memories back?" Steve asked while his wife stood in shocked silence, her excitement at the opening of her daughter's eyes fading fast._

"_Possibly. It's hard to say for certain. I'd like to do a scan so we can have a clearer idea of what the situation is, check there isn't something more serious occurring that we didn't pick up on before." Her parent's agreed without even asking Mitchie if she was okay with it. They just wanted her to get better. An hour later Mitchie found herself being wheeled through the hospital to the room where they held the MRI scanner._

_End Flashback_

"They kept me in hospital for five days after that to keep an eye on me and give my parents time to fill me in on the basic information I needed to know about my life. By the time I was allowed to go home I was sick to death of staring at the white walls." Mitchie explained as she leant against Shane, his arm gently wrapping around her waist. If anyone else saw them they'd be surprised by how quickly they'd become so close, but to Mitchie it just felt natural.

"So you didn't even remember your parents?" Shane asked. The idea of her not knowing her own family hadn't even crossed his mind before. Mitchie shook her head, telling him she'd been more than a little worried about going home with these two people who were practically strangers to her.

"Was it really hard going back to school?" Shane thought that would be the hardest thing, with everyone knowing who you were and what happened whilst you had no idea who anyone was. He had seen how those girls acted earlier and so didn't imagine her return had been easy.

"It wasn't as bad as it could have been." Mitchie shrugged. "Tia, the girl I was at the concert with, she came to see me while I was in hospital, told me we'd been friends since I arrived at the school and explained that she'd been really worried about me." Mitchie said with bitterness in her tone. After today's incident she'd realised it had all been a bunch of lies, very well thought out, but lies none the less. How Tia had kept it up for six months, Mitchie didn't know and she refused to believe that the girl she had spent countless hours with, laughing and joking, felt no sense of real friendship between them. "She told me about Steffi too, how she was the school mean girl and had a little crew of groupies. When I went back to school I had her to hang out with and to help me out when people commented on what happened." She wished she understood why Tia had done it, why she'd kept it up so long. It just didn't make sense to her, there had to be some reason. The Tia she knew didn't fit in with Steffi's group, so why would she waste her time with them?

"She seemed nice when I met her on Friday." Shane said, trying to be friendly. He hadn't seen Tia in amongst Steffi's group and so was unaware of the situation Mitchie was dealing with.

"Yeah, well, sometimes people aren't what they seem." Mitchie sighed. Shane was about to ask what she meant when they heard the front door opened, quickly followed by Connie's voice.

"Mitchie, are you home?" Connie called. The two teenagers sprung apart, moving to opposite sides of the sofa.

"In here mom." Mitchie yelled back. They heard her footsteps crossing the hall before she poked her head around the door frame.

"How did it go?" She asked, well aware of her daughter's doctor discomfort.

"Fine. We talked about a memory I might be remembering, Shane helped fill in some gaps and Dr Ralph wants me to have another scan in two weeks to see if there have been any changes." Mitchie said, rapidly filling her mom in on all the necessary details.

"You remembered something?" Connie asked hopefully.

"Only the tiniest bit, it's not that big a deal." Mitchie shrugged it off.

"It's better than nothing." Shane pointed out.

"Definitely. Well I better make a start on dinner. Mitchie, I hope you haven't forgotten about your homework." She had to remind her every day. At that moment Shane's phone went off and he chuckled seeing the name on the screen.

"It's almost as if he knew you'd said that." Shane said before excusing himself, heading into the garden to take the call as Mitchie went to her room and Connie the kitchen.

"Hey Nate, what's up?" Shane asked as he answered the call.

"Shane? Can you hear me? It's Caitlyn." A very anxious sounding voice called down the phone.

"Yes I can hear you, what's wrong?" He's barely spoken to Nate's girlfriend since camp ended, feeling jealousy every time he saw them together, wishing it was him and Mitch. "Is Nate okay?"

"He's fine, though grumpy that I stole his phone." Shane could almost picture his friend stood in the background, arms folded, a frown firmly fixed on his face. "He told me what happened with Mitchie and that you're with her. Is she okay? Does she remember me? I wish I'd stayed in contact with her better, I can't believe I lost my phone, I'm such an idiot." She went off on a tangent and eventually Shane had to interrupt.

"Caitlyn, stop." He said, instantly silencing her rambling, "She's fine, but she doesn't remember anyone, not me, not you, not Camp Rock, though I am trying to fix that. I'll tell her about you later, okay?"

"Make sure she knows I miss her and that I'm here for her. Well, there for her cos I guess I'm not much help across the ocean. I can't believe she doesn't remember anything, it's so unfair! Oh, give her my new number too, you have it right?" Shane assured her that he did and would make sure it was in her phone as soon as possible, before asking her to hand the phone to Nate.

"Hey man." The familiar voice of his best friend of nearly four years greeted him.

"She remembers Peggy but not me." Shane said bluntly, getting straight to the point. He may have acted like it was fine earlier but it was only so he wouldn't upset her. In reality he couldn't stop questioning why Peggy had jolted her memory while he just left her looking blank.

"So?" Nate said, not seeing the point, "It doesn't mean anything dude. No one understands how the brain works, it's not necessarily going to be logical." Shane sighed, knowing he was right.

"How's New York?" Shane asked, deciding to change the topic. They were staying with Nate's parents for a week and it was the first time Caitlyn had met them.

"It's good. I've just been showing Caity the sights because she's never been here before. Mom loves her, which is good," Shane was well aware of just how worried Nate had been about his parents accepting Caitlyn as his girlfriend, "though not so much when she keeps hinting that I should ask Caity to marry me. Oh and I spoke to Jason, he told me to tell you that he saw a parrot that looked exactly like you." Shane chuckled, imaging just how excited his older friend would have been about this fact.

"He's enjoying his holiday then?" Shane asked.

"Sounds like it. He's going to be out of contact for the next two days, apparently they're going to live in trees to see what it's like to live as a bird."

"Seriously? Where did he find this place?" As close as he was to Jason, he could not understand his bird obsession.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Is that your car I saw parked out there Shane?" Steve asked as they all gathered around the dinner table for their evening meal.

"Yeah, it wasn't in your way was it?" Shane still wasn't sure Mr Torres was too happy about his presence and so wanted to make sure he did everything he could to get on Steve's good side.

"No it was fine. Good choice in car. I personally prefer the XJ but then I'm not a teenage boy."

"This smells delicious Connie." Shane commented as he took a deep breath, the scent of home cooked spaghetti Bolognese filling his nostrils. He's forgotten what it was like to have a home cooked meal every night. It was the little things like that which he only realised he missed when he got them back again.

"Yeah, this is great mom." Mitchie said, helping herself to a large portion. They all ate in a comfortable silence for a while, enjoying all the different flavours of Connie's cooking.

"Mitchie, is your school doing any end of year activities?" Steve asked, making conversation.

"A few." Mitchie replied, not wanting to go into further detail if she could avoid it.

"Are you taking part in any of them?" Connie asked. Mitchie shrugged as she shoved more food in her mouth, giving herself an excuse not to talk.

"I still think you should do that talent show." Shane spoke up, catching both of the Torres' attention.

"There's a talent show?" Connie said enthusiastically, surprised her daughter hadn't mentioned it. "You should definitely take part in that sweetie, it would be fun."

"You play your music enough around here; you should show others how good you are. You enjoyed doing so last summer." Steve chimed in.

"You could show that girl from earlier how wrong she is Mitchie, like I said before you have one of the best voices I've ever heard." Shane was trying hard to persuade her.

Mitchie sighed in frustration as she swallowed her mouthful. She'd known that if it got mentioned there would be no stopping her parents insisting she took part. She sent an evil glare in Shane's direction, making him slightly regret bringing it up.

"I'll think about it." She said causing smiles to erupt on the others faces.

"When is the show?" Connie asked, hoping she'd get to see the performance if her daughter did decide to partake.

"Two weeks, the last day of term." Mitchie said, twirling some spaghetti onto her fork. A thought hit her and she looked up at the pop star sat opposite her. "Will you still be here then?" She asked. He'd been here an entire weekend and she still had no idea how long he intended to stay.

"If that's okay with you?" He replied, glancing up at Connie and Steve. He wanted to stay as long as she'd put up with him, but he didn't want to out stay her parent's welcome.

"You're free to stay as long as you want. Well, as long as Mitchie wants you to." Shane was surprised that the response came from Steve.

"Thank you." He replied happily. "If you perform, I'll make sure I'm there." He promised the girl who was his muse.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Night Connie, night Steve." Mitchie heard Shane say as she sat in her room. She was supposed to have been in bed half an hour ago, Shane having been allowed to stay up later as he was older, but instead she'd spent the time sat at her piano thinking. As she heard him knock on the door she made a snap decision.

"Come in." She called, smiling as she saw him clad in green and blue pyjamas.

"I just wanted to say goodnight." He told her, leaning casually against the door post. She went and stood opposite him, learning against the wall, mimicking his position.

"Thanks for being here Shane." She said. He smiled, telling her it wasn't a problem. "So," she said, barely able to keep the smile from her face. She knew that what she was about to say would make him happy, even if it terrified her, "if I'm going to do the talent show, I'm going to need a song." She laughed as a broad smile broke out across his face, before rubbing the back of her neck nervously as she continued, "Maybe you could help me write one?" His suggestion for how to finish 'This Is Me' was so perfect and she was already well aware of how talented a song writer he was from C3's songs. If she had his help, she reasoned, she may not end up looking like a total idiot on stage.

"I'd love to." Shane said happily. He couldn't think of a better way to spend his time. "You should really be in bed you know."

"You sound like my mom." Mitchie groaned.

"I'm okay with that, Connie's cool." Shane joked, wrapping his arms around her to give her a quick hug. "Goodnight Mitch."

"Night Shane." She replied. She loved being in his arms, she felt safer around him than with anyone else, though she couldn't explain why. She watched him walk into the guest room with a dopey smile on her face before shutting her door and sighing happily. The day may have been pretty bad in some ways but things just seemed better when she knew _the_ Shane Grey was down the hall.

**AN: All of you who get CR2 tonight, enjoy it. I hope it's the success we are all expecting! **


	10. Unexpected Guests

**AN: Thank you all for the incredible response to the last chapter, it means a lot to me. Here's a new chapter to finish off the weekend!**

Chapter 10: Unexpected Guests

Over the next week Shane and Mitchie's daily lives developed a routine. They would sit and have breakfast (which Shane would help make) with Connie and Steve; Mitchie would then go to school leaving Shane to have the day to himself. When Mitchie returned from school she would do her homework, sometimes with Shane's assistance, no matter how distracting he was, then after dinner she would sit at her piano and Shane would grab his guitar and together they would work on her song for the talent show. By Friday they had all of the music in place and had moved their focus to the lyrics.

"Alright, so where do we start?" Mitchie asked. They agreed to play the first verse through once to see what they could think of.

"My brain's blank." She complained as no lyrics came to mind. She was used to writing the lyrics first and then shaping the music around them but had agreed to try it Shane's way.

"We'll figure it out." Shane said, knowing it took a while to get the right words. They sat thinking quietly but couldn't come up with anything. "Okay, let's try this, it's something Jason always makes us do and it works surprising well." Shane explained, "We play it through again but we sing 'la' where there would be words." Mitchie laughed at the idea, not seeing how it could help. "Trust me, it works." She reluctantly agreed to give it a try and together, on their individual instruments, they played the song 'la'-ing along. As they played Mitchie kept cracking up with laughter.

"This isn't helping!" She exclaimed as they stopped play, laughing too much to continue. "Now I can't think of any words and when I hear the song I'll just think of the 'la's and laugh."

"Maybe you should just perform it like that, you know, sing 'la la la la.' Shane joked.

"What keep it as a melody with no words?" She'd meant it jokingly but as the words left her mouth they connected with Shane's, forming into lyrics. She spun around on her piano stool, playing the piece she'd thought it would fit in, singing the words quietly so Shane could barely hear them. She stopped, writing the words above the music.

"Do we have our first lyrics?" Shane asked, seeing her rapidly scribbling away.

"Sort of." She responded before playing the piece again, singing louder this time.

_Like a melody with no words_

_Until we figure it out_

_We sing la la la la la la_

"It's not much." She stated.

"But it's a start." He replied encouragingly. They shared a smile, glad to have gotten somewhere.

"I'm still not sure I can do this Shane." Mitchie sighed as she thought of standing on stage in front of a massive crowd of people, competing against Steffi and her drones. She'd managed to avoid them for most of the week, apart from a few awkward moments, particularly with Tia.

"You'll be amazing Mitch. I believe in you." Shane told her as he put his guitar away. They'd decided to stop for the evening.

"Thank you Shane, you've been the best friend a person could ask for. Nate and Jason are lucky." She felt like she knew the two other band mates very well after Shane had told her all about them. They'd spent every day discussing Camp Rock and his friends, yet nothing had clicked for Mitchie. She wandered over to her window, staring out at the sky. "Let's go outside." She decided, grabbing her jacket and then his hand, pulling him down the stairs and into the back garden. She lay on the grass in the centre of the lawn, staring upwards. "Feel free to join me." She said as Shane stood staring down at her. He smiled, laying on the ground beside her, interlocking his fingers with hers without even thinking about it.

As they lay there together under the stars, Mitchie's head started to pound. She focused on the stars, trying to ignore the pain coursing through her brain. Shane felt her grip tighten on his hand and glanced at her, only to notice a few tears dropping from her eyes.

"Mitch are you okay?" He asked, concerned. She was silent for a moment before whispering;

"We've done this before." Whilst Shane hated seeing her in pain he couldn't help but smile a bit, she'd remembered something.

_Flashback_

"_Wait, give me a sec." Mitchie said into her phone as she slipped out of the house and into her garden. It had been almost a week since she had spoken to Shane due to his busy schedule rehearsing for the tour. It was nearly midnight when he rang, she'd been about to go to sleep but couldn't resist hearing his voice._

"_You sure you're okay to talk?" He asked. He still wasn't used to the time difference and whilst four in the afternoon was a good time to talk for him, thanks to an eight hour gap, he'd realised, just after dialling her number, it may be bad for her._

"_Yeah, I'm just going outside to get some privacy and avoid keeping my parents up." She said, taking a seat on one of the garden chairs, staring up into the sky. It was a perfectly clear night and she could see all the stars._

"_Is it cold?" Shane asked as he settled onto the sofa in the living room of his apartment, staring up at the ceiling. During his 'diva' phase he'd bought himself somewhere private, moving out of the house he, Nate and Jason had shared since they got signed. He'd loved living alone before, but since the summer he'd grown to hate it, tempted to ask his friends to let him move back in. _

"_No, the weather's been surprisingly nice, sunny even. Turns out it doesn't always rain." For the two months she'd lived in England barely a day had passed when raindrops hadn't fallen. To have a completely dry day had been quite a surprise. _

"_I've never noticed how beautiful stars can be. I should spend more time looking at them." Mitchie commented when their conversation lapsed into silence._

"_You know, I've never sat and looked at the stars?" Shane admitted._

"_How? What about when you've been at Camp Rock?" She was shocked._

"_When I was a camper I was either performing at jams or spending time inside cabins." Shane explained._

"_Well you should take some time to do it, it's worthwhile." She said, watching the shapes she could see outlined in the sky._

"_Maybe tonight I'll lie in my garden and stare up at them, then it'll be like I'm doing it with you, just later." He suggested, wishing he could be with her, seeing what she could see." What constellations can you see? Just so I know what to look out for."_

"_Will the sky be the same in LA at night as it is here?" Mitchie asked. Despite studying physics for most of her school life, she had no idea._

"_I don't know, maybe."_

"_Well, I can see Orion's belt I think, three stars in a row. Oh and Capricorn, it's like a triangle. There's a group of stars that looks like a musical note too, but I'm not sure that's an official constellation." She explained. Shane vowed to spend time later looking for them all._

_End Flashback._

"You text me later saying you'd found the belt." Mitchie recalled, her voice shaking as she realised just how big a step forward this was. She closed her eyes, taking a few shaky breaths as the pain in her head eased. Shane turned away, wiping the happy tears from his eyes as subtly as he could.

"I can't believe I remembered something." Mitchie said, pulling his attention back to her.

"You did good Mitch." He said encouragingly, proud the first full memory she had involved him. She was getting better and it made him determined to stay as long as he could and help her remember it all.

'_Every star that I stood under, when you were under it too, did you ever think about us?' _Mitchie sang quietly as the lyrics came to mind.

"What's that?" Shane asked, "It was good." Mitchie blushed at the compliment.

"I think it would fit our song." She explained, pulling out her phone to note down the words before she forgot them.

"Sing it again." Shane said once she'd finished typing. She obliged and when she was done Shane continued;

'_I hope you do cause I can tell you, that's something I'll never forget.' _He suggested with a smile. "It's the one thing you remembered after all." She added his words to hers, happy with their achievement.

"That's half a verse done." She said, before glancing back up to the stars. "It's amazing the things which give you inspiration."

"Yeah." Shane agreed, unable to tear his eyes off his biggest inspiration. Lying there in the moonlight Shane realised he had never seen anyone look as truly beautiful as Mitchie did right then.

_CR-CR-CR _

"I'm sorry!" Shane sprung awake hearing her yell. He remained in bed, trying to judge what was going on. It was three in the morning; he doubted she was arguing with her parents at this time.

"Please!" She screamed, the sound travelling clearly down the hallway and to his ears. He leapt from his bed, grabbing his dressing gown on the way out of the room. He had to know what was going on.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." He heard her muttering as he reached her closed bedroom door. He wasn't sure whether to knock, not wanting to interrupt if she was with her parents.

"Shane?" He spud round, hearing Connie's voice, to see both of Mitchie's parents walking towards him looking worried. If they weren't with her, then who was she talking to?

"What's going on?" Steve asked, assuming Shane and his daughter had been arguing.

"Don't leave." They heard her say, clearly distressed.

"I don't know. I heard her yelling, it woke me up. I was coming to check she was okay." Shane explained before knocking on her door. "Mitch are you alright?" He asked.

"I'm sorry!" She yelled again.

"Mitchie, sweetheart, we're coming in okay?" Steve said, cautiously opening the door. As they entered they could heard her crying.

"Mitchie, baby what's wrong?" Connie asked rushing to her daughter's bedside.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry." She said again, as if she was desperate for them to believe her.

"What for?" Shane asked, but received no reply. The room was silent, apart from the occasional sob and the sound of deep breaths.

"Steve, can you turn the light on?" Connie asked her husband who was closest to the switch.

"Please." Mitchie whispered. She sounded so sad it broke Shane's heart. He sat on the opposite side of the bed to Connie, taking hold of Mitchie's hand, but got no response to the action. The lights came on, illuminating her face.

"She's asleep."Connie said as she saw her daughter's closed eyes, her chest rising and falling steadily.

"Was she all the time?" Steve asked, confused.

"I think she was talking in her sleep." Almost as if to prove her mother correct Mitchie spoke again, though her eyes remained closed, only her mouth moving, making it clear she wasn't awake.

"Don't go." Whatever she was dreaming about was distressing her.

"Should we wake her up?" Shane asked worriedly. He was never sure what to do when people were having nightmares.

"I'm so sorry!" This time she screamed it as if she was in the middle of a huge fight, and it was quickly followed by tears. Connie reacted instantly, shaking her and calling her name. Shane held her hand tightly in his and leant down to her ear, whispering;

"Mitch, it's Shane. I'm here. You need to wake up. You're dreaming, whatever is happening isn't real." To his surprise, when he sat back he found her wide awake, staring at him in confusion.

"What's going on?" She asked as she glanced around her room to find everyone stood around her.

"You were having a nightmare. Can you remember what you were dreaming about?" Connie asked, hoping to get an understanding of what had caused her such distress.

"I can't remember." Mitchie said, any memory of her dream had vanished as soon as she'd woken up. "I'm sorry." Shane assured her it was alright before they all returned to their beds, hoping to drift back to sleep.

_CR-CR-CR_

Mitchie found herself woken on Saturday by the sound of the doorbell ringing. She groaned when she rolled over and noticed it was only nine-thirty am. That may not be late on a weekday but Mitchie was very fond of having a lie-in at the weekend. She heard her mother talking enthusiastically to whoever was at the door as she got out of bed, deciding she may as well get up now she was awake.

"Hey Mitch, you up?" Shane called through her door. She confirmed she was, her voice giving away how tired she was. "Can you come downstairs soon?" She promised she'd be down just as soon as she was dressed. "So in an hour then?" He teased, having grown used to her long morning routine.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Well this is a pleasant surprise." Connie said as she moved away, allowing the two new guests to enter.

"We're sorry we didn't ring first Mrs Torres, it was a rather last minute decision to come." The guy explained, glancing at the slightly guilty looking girl stood beside him.

"The more the merrier." Connie said as she led them into the living room.

"When I heard what had happened I just had to see she was okay." The girl explained.

"That's very sweet of you." Connie said. "Can I get you anything to eat or drink?" They declined, informing her they'd had breakfast on the plane a short while earlier.

"Mitch said she'll be down shortly." Shane said as he entered the room, taking a seat beside them. "So where are you staying?" He asked.

"We've got a hotel booked nearby." The guy explained.

"You can stay here, we have the room." Connie said, feeling bad that these two had travelled here to see her daughter and were having to pay for accommodation as a result.

"It's honestly fine Mrs Torres, we didn't want to impose." The guy said in his usual tactful manner.

"Well you will at least allow me to feed you, surely." Connie insisted.

"Will we get famous Torres burgers?" The girl asked excitedly, making Connie chuckle.

"If you would like them I'm sure I can make some." The girl smiled brightly, she'd missed Connie's cooking.

"See, I can get ready in a short space of time." Mitchie claimed as she walked into the room before freezing as she noticed the two people sat on the sofa.

"Mitchie, you remember Nate, you met him after the concert." Shane said, re-introducing her to his friend. "And this is his girlfriend..."

"Caitlyn!" Mitchie squealed in excitement, flinging her arms around the girl who hadn't been expecting that reaction.


	11. Going In Circles

Chapter 11 – Going In Circles

Shane paced around the garden, ignoring the continuous pour of rain falling upon him. It had been an hour since Mitchie had arrived downstairs and instantly remembered Caitlyn and whilst Shane had acted as if he was fine for the first thirty minutes, he'd quickly grown sick of the two girls catching up like old friends, excusing himself before he said something he'd regret.

His phone rang, pulling him from his angry daze. As he slid it from his pocket and saw the name he could almost predict what this conversation would result in.

"Hi Jason." He said as he continued to pace, wearing a path into the grass with his repetitive movement.

"Hey Shane, do you know where Nate is? He's not answering his phone and I need to find out what day he's going back to the apartment. I may have forgotten my key to get back in." Jason explained. Shane glanced up, looking in through the living room window where he could see Nate sat with his arms wrapped around Caitlyn as she and Mitchie laughed happily at something Mitchie said.

"He's here." Shane responded.

"Where?" Jason asked and Shane could almost picture his best friend looking around in confusion.

"Mitchie's house. He told Caitlyn what happened and she insisted on coming over here to make sure Mitch was okay. They only arrived an hour ago, but I don't think he's planning on heading back instantly." Shane replied as the rain got heavier.

"Oh." He heard Jason respond sadly. He sighed, knowing that what was about to occur was inevitable. He decided to make the first move.

"Why don't you fly over too?" He suggested, well aware Jason would spend weeks being upset that he was left out if he didn't.

"Really?" Jason's voice was laced with excitement.

"Sure." Shane said unenthusiastically.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Do you think he's okay out there?" Mitchie asked in concern as she saw Shane once more turn and walk across the garden.

"He's fine. He'll come in once he stops being grumpy." Nate said. He knew his friend too well.

"Shouldn't one of us go and talk to him, try to get him to come inside. It is raining after all, he could get ill." Mitchie reasoned. The looks both she and Caitlyn sent Nate made it quite clear it was him they expected to go out in the rain.

"Fine." He sighed, heading into the garden.

"So how long have you and he been together?" Mitchie asked when she was left alone with her good friend. Though she didn't remember specifics she knew who Caitlyn was, she recognised her face and she was well aware they got along well. To have someone who seemed so familiar, a person who she knew before they were introduced, was a welcome difference in her life.

"Since about a month after Camp Rock ended. We talked for a while then he eventually got up the courage to ask me out. It was adorable because he was so nervous." Caitlyn explained.

"Bless him." Mitchie awed. "Did I know you were together?" She wanted to fill in as many blanks as she could.

"No." Caitlyn admitted. "We kept it quiet for a while, even from Shane and Jase. We wanted to be sure that we were happy with the relationship before everyone else started to judge it. By the time we told people, me and you had grown apart." She said sadly. She hadn't wanted to lose touch with Mitchie, she was one of the best people Caitlyn had ever met at Camp Rock, but living so far apart, in such different time zones, they'd struggled to ever find a time to talk.

"I'm sorry." Mitchie said. She knew she and Caitlyn got on really well. To know she hadn't made sure to keep their friendship alive made her feel guilty.

"Well we can fix it now." Caitlyn said with a smile.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Jason's coming here." Shane explained as he hung up. Nate had joined him outside and had started pacing alongside him, waiting for the call to end.

"Doesn't want to be left out?" It was more a statement than a question. The three of them had barely done anything in the last three years which only involved two of them.

"He's getting a plane as soon as his holiday ends. Oh and he's lost his keys for the apartment again."

"Brilliant." Nate said sarcastically. "How does he manage to do that so often?"

"It's Jason." Shane said. That was an explanation in itself.

"So, I've got to ask, why are we pacing back and forth like tigers caged in a zoo?"

"Well, you're doing it because you've decided to follow me." Shane replied.

"And you're doing it because...?" Nate pushed, knowing how stubborn Shane was about opening up about his feelings. Shane sighed and stopped pacing, instead crossing over to the small, covered seating area in the corner furthest from the house. He took a seat, Nate sitting opposite him, before sighing again.

"You were right." He stated. A triumphant smile appeared on Nate's face, not helping Shane's mood at all. "It's hard, her not remembering. I'll be telling her about something we shared and she'll just stare at me blankly."

"But weren't you saying earlier that she did remember something?" Nate asked.

"Yeah, but that was only a time we were on the phone. It was great, don't get me wrong, but then Caitlyn turns up and it like, makes everything harder, you know? She just instantly remembered her. She didn't know her when I talked about her but seeing her was an instant memory jog. I don't get why it happened with Caitlyn and not me." Shane grumbled.

"It's unbelievable, isn't it? I mean after all you are _the_ Shane Grey. What girl with amnesia wouldn't remember you?" Nate said sarcastically earning himself a rather nasty glare. "Shane, no one knows how the brain works, or why we remember some things and not others. But think about it: she spent the last six months knowing about you as a pop star in a band. She saw you in posters and on TV only days after waking up, when her brain wasn't up to remembering anything and so her mind started forming new memories involving you which will no doubt make it harder for her to remember you."

"You know it's not always helpful to be so logical." Shane complained.

"I can't help it man, it's just the way I am." Nate joked. "Come on, it's cold out here, let's head back in, I reckon the girls have had enough gossip time." Nate stood, surprised when Shane followed. "I can't believe you let your hair get wet." Nate commented, looking at Shane's soggy locks as they headed towards the house.

"Yeah, well, I told you, Mitchie makes me do strange things."

_CR-CR-CR_

"You couldn't choose a more subtle car, could you?" Nate said as they all climbed into Shane's Jaguar later that afternoon.

"That's what I said!" Mitchie said from her position next to Caitlyn in the rather small backseats.

"But it's a nice car." Shane defended himself as he reversed out of the drive.

"Mine's a nice car." Nate responded. He had hired a Ford Focus for him and Caitlyn. "But it won't draw lots of unwanted attention."

"This hasn't drawn much attention to me."

"Says the guy who had to take an hour long nap on Thursday because he was chased around town for nearly two hours by about a hundred squealing girls." Mitchie teased.

"Oh shush." He replied grumpily.

"So where are we going anyway?" Mitchie asked. The rain had cleared up and the sun had decided to make an appearance. As they had the afternoon free Shane had informed them they were going out, allowing the others no choice.

"You'll see when we get there." He hoped Mitchie would enjoy it.

"When will that be? Is it far?" Caitlyn jokingly asked, knowing it would wind Shane up.

"It's not that far." Shane said as he waited for the traffic to clear before turning into a little car park. "We're here." He told them as he parked. He pulled his seat forward and helped Mitchie out of the back seat, chuckling at the huge smile that grew on her face when she realised where they were.

"I love this place! I haven't been here in weeks." She squealed in excitement.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Life jackets." Nate said, handing them out to the others stood on the dock that had been set up next to the river. This was one of the most popular attractions in the town, an old couple own the place, having set it up early in their lives and it had grown into a massive success.

"Right, I've hired us two canoes, one for you two." Shane said handing Nate and Caitlyn an oar each, "and one for us, if that's okay?" He'd been unsure if she'd be happy stuck on a river with only him.

"Of course it is." Mitchie said excitedly, taking an oar from him.

They selected two canoes and dragged them over to the water, the girls climbing in first.

"Have fun." Nate said as he climbed in opposite Caitlyn. He knew what Shane was hoping to recreate with this activity and he really hoped it worked for his friend's sake. He wasn't sure how much more rejection Shane could take.

"Do you actually know how to row?" Mitchie asked as they floated gently away from the dock.

"Not really, but I'm sure we can figure it out. If not we can just go in circles." Mitchie winced in pain. "What's wrong?" Shane asked, instantly concerned.

"Nothing, just my head hurting. It's been bad on and off all day, but I'm fine." She'd been trying to ignore the throbbing pain filling her head all morning, determined not to let it stop her doing stuff.

"You sure? We can turn back, well attempt to, if you want." He didn't like seeing her in pain.

"Honestly Shane, I'm alright." She smiled at him to prove it as the pain dulled slightly. She was growing used to it being almost constant.

They rowed a little way down the river in a comfortable silence as Mitchie worked up the courage to confront him about earlier.

"What was wrong this morning?" She asked, blushing when she realised how blunt the question came out. Shane stared at the bottom of the boat for a moment, trying to decide how truthful to be.

"I don't want to say." He muttered.

"Why?" She asked, placing a hand on his arm gently, trying to reassure him that she wouldn't be judgemental.

"It's stupid." He said, glancing up at her. She smiled at him, encouraging him to talk. "I was kind of thinking of leaving." He said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Jerk." She joked, shoving him in the arm softly. She laughed at the bright smile that lit his face. "You're not meant to be pleased about it!"

"Sorry." He replied, putting on a fake sad face. "You always used to call me that, it was sort of an in joke between us." He explained.

"I'll have to call you it more often then, especially since you are one." They laughed together. "So what made you want to leave?" She asked, suddenly turning things serious again.

"You remembered Caitlyn, and Peggy, but not me. I don't really like people not remembering me." He admitted guiltily, knowing he sounded very self-centred.

"I'm sorry Shane, honestly I am. I wish I could remember you. But it doesn't matter that I don't, you've made _new_ memories with me, _that's_ what's important."Shane smiled at her before responding.

"I really care about you Mitch, whether you remember me or not, I will always love you, no matter what." He stopped, realising what he had just let slip.

"Love me?" Mitchie repeated, shocked by the words. "What are you talking about?" Shane stared at her and stopped paddling, moving so he was right beside her, their eyes locking on each other.

"I'm in love with you Mitchie, I have been since last summer but I was never confident enough to tell you." He didn't break eye contact with her as he gently slipped his hand through her hair, softly stroking her cheek before leaning in. His lips pressed gently against hers.

She sat frozen in shock, not understanding what was happening. She gradually kissed him back but almost as soon as she started, she stopped again, pulling away as her head filled with agonising pain. She buried her head in her hands, muffling a scream.

"Mitchie? Mitch, what's wrong?" Shane asked in panic, her reaction terrifying him. He wrapped his arms around her, gently rocking her back and forth in an attempt to calm her down.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She muttered over and over again. She didn't know why she was reacting this way but she couldn't stop.

"Shush, it's okay Mitch. I shouldn't have done that. It's okay." He held her closer as he whispered to her gently. Gradually she calmed down, her breathing returning to a normal pace. "Come on, let's go back." Shane said, returning to his side of the canoe and picking up both oars. He rowed them back to the dock whilst Mitchie sat staring at her hands, which were still shaking slightly. She was scared that she could get to a state where she could barely control herself. That wasn't what she'd imagined kissing Shane Grey would be like.

**AN: It was inevitable that they'd end up getting too close to fast, don't ya think? I'm not too proud of this chapter, might go back and re-write it when I get the time. I'm currently writing the final chapter of this story, but don't worry, you guys have another 6 chapters to go. Let me know what you think, your reviews make me feel so incredibly good. **


	12. I'm Jason Green

Chapter 12 – I'm Jason Green

"I want you to take two of these every four hours for the next week. That should numb the pain a bit and help prevent the nightmares." Dr Ralph said to Mitchie as she and Shane sat in the office. Mitchie had woken everyone with her screaming for a second night running, but still had no recollection of the dream which caused it. After complaining numerous times of how much her head was hurting Connie had set up another doctor's appointment, concerned by the sudden onslaught of changes in her daughter.

"Is that everything?" Mitchie asked. After a disturbed night's sleep all she wanted to do was go home and curl up on the sofa watching junk TV.

"I believe so, just make sure you take it easy, get lots of sleep and I will see you in a week for your scans." Dr Ralph said before handing Mitchie her new medication. The young girl said her goodbyes and stood to leave.

"Mr Grey, may I speak to you alone a moment?" The doctor asked. Shane gave Mitchie the keys to his car, instructing her to go and wait in it, knowing how desperately she wanted to get out of the doctor's office.

"What's up doc?" From the look on Dr Ralph's face Shane could tell he'd encountered that joke many times before.

"I think the increase in headaches is the result of too much pressure being put on Mitchie to remember past events." Dr Ralph explained. "I'm sure you aren't meaning to, but I see how you look at Mitchie, that desperation to find a flicker of recognition in her eyes. I've seen that look in many husbands and boyfriends in the past in cases like this."

"I'm not her boyfriend." Shane pointed out. Mitchie had made it very clear, after he'd kissed her, that he was still a stranger in many respects and her life was complicated enough without feelings making it harder. It had hurt but he understood where she was coming from and so had agreed to keep things platonic.

"The point is Shane; I think you should consider easing back a bit. It's great that she's finally remembering people and events, but is it really worth it if it's making her more ill in other ways?" Shane shook his head. "Just take things a little slower, that's all. If she's meant to remember, she will."

Shane thanked the doctor before heading for his car. What was he supposed to do, not mention anything about the past which connected them? He had another week until Mitchie's talent show. He made a deal with himself; he'd stay until the show and if, between now and then, Mitchie kept remembering but kept being in pain and having nightmares, then after that night he would leave. He couldn't keep hurting her.

"Tonight? I don't see why not." Shane opened his car door, catching the end of Mitchie's conversation. "You came all the way over here to see me, I'm sure I have time for a girly night. I'm guessing Nate wants a guy's night with Shane?" Mitchie giggled at Shane's grimace. "He's thrilled with the idea." She teased as Shane started to drive back towards her house. "Alright Caity, I'll see you later." She hung up, turning cheerily to Shane.

"Someone's feeling better." He commented, taking in the broad smile which graced her lips.

"Girly nights are the best." Mitchie stated, excited to spend an evening in with her good friend.

"Do I _have_ to spend the evening with Nate?" Shane asked, dreading the idea of a guys' night.

"Are you a girl?" Mitchie asked, confusing him.

"No, what's..." He was interrupted.

"Then you can't come to a _girls'_ night. You don't have to hang out with Nate, but you can't hang out with me and Caitlyn." She teased him.

"Fine." He responded grumpily. He didn't like losing out on time with her.

"I thought you were going out tonight anyway? Isn't Jason's flight getting in later?" She was sure Shane had told her his other band mate was coming in that night.

"I'd actually forgotten that." Shane sighed. He wasn't looking forward to Connect 3 reconnecting. This was supposed to be his time away from his friends, yet they wouldn't leave him alone.

"You and Nate can show him the sights. Becs would die if you took him to the cafe; she has a total fan crush on him." Mitchie admitted, knowing her friend would probably kill her for letting that information slip.

"Is that so? Interesting..." Shane murmured, a thought springing to mind.

_CR-CR-CR_

"What time am I allowed to return in the morning?" Shane asked, trying to stay in Mitchie's house for as long as possible.

"Any time after 9am tomorrow morning, I'll be in school by then." He wasn't allowed to come back until the girly night was fully over.

"Come on dude, let's leave them to it." Nate said, attempting to drag his friends out the door. "Jason'll be waiting at the airport for ages at this rate." The two boys had agreed to pick up their friend once his flight arrived.

"Alright, fine." He gave Mitchie a hug. "Have a good evening, don't gossip about us too much." He said, giving Caitlyn a pointed looked, well aware the younger girl would be planning to discuss his and Mitchie's relationship in great depth.

"We'll behave, now leave already." Mitchie joked as she gently pushed him out of the house, shutting the door before he could say another word.

"He really is stubborn about leaving you." Caitlyn commented as she and Mitchie headed upstairs.

"He's just really protective." Mitchie replied, defensively.

"He's acting like a puppy dog." Caitlyn teased. They took a seat on Mitchie's bed, cracking open one of the numerous bars of chocolate Caitlyn had brought with her.

"You sure you don't mind helping me finish this song?" Mitchie asked, attempting to move the conversation on. "Shane and I have written most of it but I want the final version to be a surprise for him." They'd had a very successful weekend writing lyrics, leaving Mitchie with only the chorus and a few tweaks to do.

"Of course I don't mind, we'll make it into an awesome song rather than the pretty decent song Shane would have made it." Mitchie chuckled at the competitiveness between her and her two friends. "But I'll only do it if we can discuss the whole 'you and Shane relationship' thing at some point." Caitlyn bargained.

"There is no 'me and Shane relationship' thing." Mitchie said. Caitlyn gave her a look of disbelief; she'd seen the kiss in the canoe. Mitchie sighed, giving in. "Fine, we'll talk about it, but later, okay?"

"That's fine with me." Caitlyn replied before pulling out her laptop and loading her production software. "Come on then, show me the music." She instructed. Mitchie crossed to the piano and played the song through before handing over the sheets which contained all the information Caitlyn needed.

_CR-CR-CR_

Shane and Nate sat in the private lounge of the airport, sunglasses and hats firmly in place to hide their identities from any lurking fans. It had been rumoured in the press that the whole of Connect 3 had decided to spend their vacation time in England, meaning they had to be more cautious when out in public.

"How late is he now?" Shane complained, growing impatient with waiting for his friend.

"Only five minutes. Knowing Jason he probably tried to get out of the wrong end of the plane." Nate joked, though it wasn't an unlikely suggestion. "Look, I know you'd rather be with Mitchie but think what the doctor said. Maybe it'll do her good to have some space."

"Oh come on man, it's so obvious you're annoyed about missing out on a night with your girl, don't try to act like you're completely happy with this." Shane said, seeing straight through Nate's positive attitude.

"Difference is, I can survive without my girl, you, on the other hand, can't." Nate argued.

"You want to bet?" Shane challenged.

"How much?"

"$50 says I can go the whole night without talking to Mitchie, another $50 says you can't go without talking, which includes texting," Shane added as he heard Nate's phone go off, "Caitlyn." He was confident he would end up $100 richer.

"Deal." Nate agreed with equal confidence.

"I can't leave you guys for five minutes without you getting into either an argument or a bet can I?" An amused voice stated from behind them, causing the two pop stars to spin around rapidly.

"Jase! Good to see you dude." Nate said, greeting his friend with a brief man hug, knowing he would appreciate it. Having lived and toured together almost continuously since they became the biggest success of Camp Rock four years ago, it was odd for the two of them to be apart for very long. They'd become more like brothers than friends.

"How'd you recognise us?" Shane asked as he led the other two back towards the car park.

"Dude, I've been wearing a disguise with you for quite a few years now, black hat and sunglasses? Who else would be wearing that inside an airport? It's predictable." Jason reasoned.

"What do you suggest; we dress up as birds or something when we're trying to hide next time?" Shane replied, expecting such a suggestion to come from Jason's mouth.

"No, don't be ridiculous." Jason said surprisingly. "We should just dress as ourselves." They gave him a look, clearly thinking he'd gone loopy.

"Surely that defeats the point of disguising ourselves?" Nate said.

"People expect us to wear disguises, so they look out for people who are wearing strange things, like hats and sunglasses indoors. If we dress like us, we'll blend in more plus people won't believe we are us because that would be too obvious. I tried it on holiday, didn't get spotted once!" Jason explained.

"So what's the plan?" Jason asked as they climbed into the car. He was excited to finally be able to join in on the 'make Mitchie remember' front. She was the only girl Shane had ever been interest in who hadn't insulted him for his dumb comments and bird fascination, making her his favourite.

The three boys drove into town, deciding to have a simple dinner at the cafe Mitchie had taken Shane to on his first day in town.

"This place is adorable." Jason exclaimed as they walked in, taking in the traditional cottage decorations.

"Jase, guys don't say 'adorable'." Shane chided as they took a seat at one of the tables near the back of the cafe.

"Well _I_ just did so clearly some guys do." Jason replied. Over the last few weeks Jason's confidence had grown and he'd become much better at talking back to Shane, no longer allowing his comments to get to him as they once did.

Nate smirked at the surprised look on Shane's face, proud of his friend for standing up for himself. They sat quietly surveying the menus, trying to decide what was best to get.

"What can I get for you today?" The waitress asked in her typical cheery tone, not noticing who it was she was about to serve.

"Hey Becs!" Shane greeted, looking up from his menu, glad that things at worked out how he'd hoped, ready to put his plan into action. He was going to see if what Mitchie had told him earlier about her friend was actually true.

"Shane! Good to see you again. Is Mitchie around here somewhere?" She asked, noticing her friend was nowhere to be seen.

"No, she's with a friend at hers." Shane explained.

"She kicked him out of the house." Nate teased, putting his menu down also. Seeing a second member of Connect 3 at the table was more than a bit of a shock for the young waitress, but she handled it with skill.

"I'm not surprised. I'd kick him out too if I were her." Becs teased, earning a faux glare from Shane.

"That's Nate," Shane introduced, trying to prevent the conversation turning to pure bullying of him. "And that's Jason." He indicated to his friend whose head was still buried deeply within the menu. "Oi, Jase!" Shane kicked him under the table, instantly grabbing his attention.

"That hurt!" Jason exclaimed, looking up to glare at his friend, however the now stunned waitress caught his eye, causing him to blush. "Sorry, I was trying to work out if the magpie pie had real magpies in it." He explained. "I'm Jason Green." He stuck his hand out, casually shaking hers.

"Becs Nimand." The waitress introduced herself, shaking Nate's hand after Jason's. "And the magpie bit of the pie is actually soy soaked chicken. It's a bit of a local joke. Don't worry; no magpies were harmed in the making of the pie." She teased. Shane was impressed; very few people were able to speak so coherently seconds after meeting them. He started to doubt the truth in Mitchie's word. If this girl had a thing for the older of his band mates, why hadn't she shown it?

"Oh that's good." Jason replied, relieved.

"Can I get you some drinks?" Becs asked, returning to her original purpose for coming to the table. The three guys ordered diet cokes and Becs promised to return to take their food orders shortly.

"How do you know her?" Jason asked, his eyes still firmly focused on the waitress.

"She's a good friend of Mitchie's, we met here about a week ago." Shane explained. "And before you ask, yes she's single." He continued, knowing the question was coming.

"I wasn't going to ask any such thing. She just seems cool, that's all." Jason defended.

Jason watched the waitress pour their drinks behind the bar. She was unlike anyone he'd met before, it seemed like their fame didn't matter to her one bit. That was rare.

Nate and Shane broke into laughter at the loving look in Jason's eyes. Shane could only hope Mitchie was right otherwise, he thought, they'd have a case of unrequited love to deal with.

"Listen guys, there's something I want to talk to you about." Shane said, deciding to tell them what he'd been thinking recently.

"This sounds serious." Nate said before giving Shane his full attention.

"I know I moved out a while ago but, see, I was wondering if I could move back into our house?" Shane blurted out, getting to the point instantly. With all the instances of family time he had experienced staying in the Torres household, he'd come to realised how lonely he was living alone.

"Why, what's wrong with your house?" Nate asked suspiciously. When Shane had moved out he'd made it very clear he would never want to move back in with them. Sure, he was a different person, but after nearly a year of putting up with Shane's diva phase, Nate found it hard to fully trust his friend.

"Nothing, it's just...well..." Shane stumbled, trying to find the right words.

"Go on." Jason said, enjoying seeing his friend squirm uncomfortably, trying to find the right way to express his emotions.

"I miss you guys, okay, I said it." Shane yelled, turning bright red as he noticed the other customers staring at him.

"She really has changed you, hasn't she?" Nate said, surprised by Shane's outburst. The middle member of Connect 3 had told them Mitchie had made him do a 180 on his life last summer, but the other two didn't fully believe it until that moment.

"Of course you can move back in, though you may have to sleep in amongst Nate's guitars." Jason said. When Shane had moved out his room had instantly been filled with various instruments.

"Here's your food." Becs said, bringing the plates over. "Is there anything I can get you before I go on my break?" The guys shook their heads.

"You could join us for your break, if you want?" Jason suggested, hoping the other two wouldn't mind. He wanted to get to know this mysterious girl.

**AN: Right guys, just to let you know, this will be the last chapter (unless I get some free time later) for about 2 weeks as I am going on holiday tomorrow. I hope you liked this chapter and I promise I'll update lots when I get back with some very drama filled chapters. **

**Also, I meant to say this last chapter, we passed 100 reviews! That, for me, is insane and I just want to thank you all so much. You rock (Camp Rock!) x**


	13. Uncooked Cupcake

**AN: I am back! Having had an amazing ten days in Chicago and LA (I totally recommend you all go there!) I am back in England. I have had very little sleep but I thought you all deserved a chapter. Once this and the new chapter of Introducing Me are up I am off to watch Camp Rock 1 and 2 which I now own on DVD! Enjoy**

Chapter 13 – Uncooked Cupcake

The guys left the cafe two hours later and only then because it was closing time. Jason had gotten Bec's number and promised to give her a call if he ever found himself in the area with nothing to do. She'd even told him exactly what shifts she worked so he'd know when she was free and when she was in the cafe.

"You _so_ like her." Shane teased when he was sure Mitchie's friend was out of hearing range. He'd never seen Jason flirt so much, or so successfully. It made him feel rather proud, his friend was learning.

"I do not! She just seems nice." Jason defended himself, before changing the subject. "Do I get to see Mitchie now?" As much as he enjoyed spending time with his band mates, he could do that any time, whereas he could only see Mitchie now and he'd missed out on time Shane and Nate had gotten so wanted to make up for it.

"She's having a girly sleepover so we're not really allowed to go see her." Nate explained, a hint of sadness in his voice. He really didn't like the fact he was losing precious time with Caitlyn, especially when it was her idea.

"I fly all the way here and don't even get to see her on the day of my arrival?" Jason asked, partly jokingly. He understood that girls needed nights to themselves, his sister had told him so frequently, but that didn't mean he was happy he had to wait longer to see two of his friends.

"He has a point Nate. He did fly all the way over here to see her. It would be quite rude of her not to let him come over tonight." Shane said, hoping Nate would pick up on the hint he was dropping.

"It wouldn't exactly be our fault if we went over. He should be allowed to see her tonight and he can't get there without us, and after all it's her and Caitlyn's fault that we have to gate crash because they chose tonight to have a girly catch up." Nate reasoned knowing exactly what Shane was suggesting as they climbed into the car.

"What are you two blabbering on about?" Jason asked from the backseat, thoroughly confused about the conversation occurring in front of him, not sure he wanted to be involved in whatever scheme they were cooking up.

"We're going to Mitchie's." Nate announced, pulling out of the parking space.

"It's only fair you get to see her tonight." Shane continued. All thought of his and Nate's bet disappeared from their minds as the car turned towards the house which held both of their girls.

_CR-CR-CR_

The kitchen was a mess. When they'd decided to spend the next part of their evening baking cupcakes, Mitchie and Caitlyn had actually intended to make the sweet treats. However, as Connie had predicted, an almighty food fight had broken out. Egg shells were smashed all over the floor, their contents covering both girls' hair. Caster sugar had been added on top as all plans to complete the batter flew out the window, almost literally if Caitlyn had had her way.

They were stood in the centre of the room, both prepared to attack but waiting for the other to make the first move. In Caitlyn's hands was a pile of flour, nearly half of the full bag they had started with. Mitchie's weapon of choice was butter, which was slowly softening from the heat of her palms. They stood there, locked in conflict, both refusing to pounce. Their eyes were locked, waiting for the single movement which would move their sticky situation forward.

The doorbell rang but neither noticed, too caught up in the moment. As Connie walked to the front door, she poked her head into the kitchen, chuckling at the sight which met her eyes. Most mothers would be furious about the havoc the two teenagers had created but in Connie's opinion it was nice to see Mitchie having fun and looking relaxed and pain free for the first time in days. She knew her daughter would clean it up (or would persuade a certain pop star to do so for her in the morning.)

"Hi Connie." Said the pop star in question as Connie pulled the door open. She wished she could say she was surprised he had returned before his allotted time, but she wasn't.

"Shane, I thought you were banished for the night?" Connie said before moving aside, allowing him to walk in, his band mates following close behind to escape the drizzle occurring outside.

"We were, but Jason just flew in and _really_ wanted to see Mitchie so we couldn't exactly say no to him." Shane explained and he took his shoes off. He was hoping he'd be allowed to remain in the house for the rest of the night since he was already there. "You remember Jason?" The oldest boy waved awkwardly, not sure he was comfortable with being used as his friends' excuse for their inability to stay away for a single night.

"I do believe he helped me make chocolate bird nests on the last day of camp." Connie said with a smile, remembering Jason's child like excitement when she had suggested it.

"They were awesome. They had little chocolate eggs and everything!" Jason exclaimed, his eyes lighting up at the recollection. "I ate like ten."

"Is that why you were sick on the way back?" Nate asked. They'd had to pull over three times on the return journey to their apartment.

"Maybe." Jason stated, "But they were so good, it was worth it." Nate wasn't so sure he agreed.

"The girls are in the kitchen." Connie broke in, trying to put an end to the discussion about puke occurring in front of her. "I warn you it's a bit of a war zone in there. You may want to find some form of protection before you enter." Though it sounded like she was joking she was in fact deadly serious. The guys exchanged confused looks before venturing further into the house.

"You put that down and I'll put mine down." Mitchie said as she tried to resolve her standoff with Caitlyn. It wasn't working very effectively as neither girl wanted to lose.

"I don't trust you." Caitlyn retorted, her hands still full of flour whilst Mitchie's butter started to slowly drip from her fingers and onto the floor.

"Come on, I promise. On the count of three. One." They stayed still, Mitchie's lips the only thing in the room which moved. "Two." The boys arrived at the kitchen door, shocked by how much mess the two girls had made in less than three hours. In all the years the three of them had lived together, their apartment had never reached this state. "Three." Movement occurred in a flash. As if in sync the ingredients in their hands were flung across the room.

Caitlyn dodged Mitchie's butter attack, which only missed her head by a few inches. She flung her flour and then lunged for the bag containing the rest which was stood conveniently on the top beside her, grabbing it with both hands.

At the same time Mitchie picked up the bowl that contained the mixture they had successfully made before the idea of cooking grew boring in their minds. Both girls threw their larger portions of ingredients across the kitchen. This time their aim was more accurate.

The boys watched in silent amusement as Caitlyn was coated in the chocolaty gloop and Mitchie's face became white as a sheet as the half full bag of flour dumped its contents on her.

Shane's mouth dropped open, an almost forgotten part of his summer filling his mind. There, stood in front of him, was not only the 'girl with the voice' but also the flour faced girl from the kitchen at the start of the summer, the first person to have the guts to properly call him out on his jerk-like actions. He'd known Mitchie longer than he thought without ever realising it.

"You two are crazy!" Jason said, having forgotten how mad the two girls were when together.

Hearing an unexpected male voice Mitchie and Caitlyn spun around to look at the door. Smiles lit up their faces as they saw the previously missing member of Connect 3 stood there, a wide grin on his face.

"Jason!" They exclaimed in sync before exchanging a mischievous glance, rushing at him and engulfing him in a large bear hug, covering him instantly in the ingredients they had coated themselves with.

A small glare crossed Shane's face as he saw 'his' girl remember yet another person who wasn't him, that was until Nate leant over and whispered in his ear;

"She doesn't remember him, she met him again at the concert, remember. Stop being jealous." Nate instructed him. The glare dropped from Shane's face instantly and turned into a smile, happy to see her so excited.

Having successfully turned Jason into an uncooked cupcake, the girls turned their focus to the other two, unimpressed looks on their faces.

"I told you they wouldn't be able to stay away _all_ night." Caitlyn gloated.

"Fine, you win." Mitchie sighed, pulling out a fiver and placing it in Caitlyn's open hand. The boys weren't the only ones who made bets.

**AN: Yes, I know it's short. I am going to try and upload one more chapter later tonight but I have unpacking and sleeping to do. This story should be complete by the end of the week, if I work really hard, so make me feel it's worth it by leaving a review. Also we passed 150 reviews which is incredible so thank you!**


	14. Final Homework

Chapter 14- Final Homework.

Term was coming to an end. Mitchie had deadlines left, right and centre and, along with working on her song and spending time with her guests, she barely had a free moment in the day. She couldn't wait for school to end; it meant summer and no more days spent walking the hallways alone. Tia had tried to talk to her, but Mitchie would just walk by and ignore her, still to hurt to do anything else.

"Whatcha doing?" Shane asked as he wandered into her room, kneeling on the floor beside the desk she was sat at. He'd barely seen her all day. He'd been out with Jason when she'd gotten home and since she'd gotten back she'd locked herself in her room working away.

"I'm attempting to get this English essay done, I need to write a few more paragraphs and then a conclusion then it'll be done." After this essay she only had a music piece to complete then all her homework for the year would be done, leaving her with just revision to do for her two exams on Thursday.

"You reckon you could take a short break?" Shane asked hopefully. Mitchie glanced at the clock, calculating timings in her head.

"Maybe, but if dinner's in an hour and it takes us an hour to eat, that only really gives me an hour left to do this." She motioned to her essay in frustration.

"Connie said dinner wouldn't be until nine today as she won't be finished with her job until half seven and apparently your dad isn't allowed in the kitchen." Mitchie chuckled, remembering the last time her dad tried to cook. The fire brigade had been required. "Come on Mitch, you've already let me distract you, you may as well take a break." Shane was skilled when it came to persuasion.

"Okay, but only a short one, I want to try and get this all done." She explained as she shut her laptop.

"Great, grab your coat, we're going out." Shane said, leaping to his feet.

"Out? No Shane I don't have time to go out." Mitchie moved to open her laptop again but Shane placed his hand on top of it, preventing her from doing so.

"Mitch, please? Jason's been desperate to go back to the cafe and see Becs all day and if I go with him, Nate and Caitlyn I'll be a total fifth wheel and that's no fun." He put his puppy dog eyes to full use. "And I know for a fact you've been craving one of those hot chocolates all week. I'll even pay for you." He looked up at her and all Mitchie could think was how adorable he looked.

They hadn't talked about the kiss they'd shared at the weekend but since that day her feelings for him had grown and grown. It scared her that, after only knowing him for two weeks, she wasn't sure what she was going to do once he left. She couldn't imagine not seeing him every day. As she stared into his eyes she gave in, not for the hot chocolate, nor to prevent him being a fifth wheel, purely because it was Shane asking and she couldn't say no to him.

"So what's going on between Jason and Becs?" Mitchie asked as they walked to the cafe. She hadn't seen the two of them together but every time she hung out with Jason he would find some way to bring her into the conversation.

"He's totally smitten." Shane explained, "But I'm not sure about her. She'll happily talk to him and they text all the time, but whenever I've seen them together, which admittedly is only twice, she just seems so casual around him, so she may not reciprocate the feelings."

"You totally sounded like a girl just then." Mitchie chuckled. He'd obviously spent way too much time with her and Caitlyn. "I'll see what she's like today then I'll tell you how she feels." Mitchie had seen Becs flirt before so she knew the subtle signs to look for.

When they arrived Nate, Caitlyn and Jason were already seated, with Becs conversing with them.

"You managed to drag her out then." Becs commented as they took the two remaining seats.

"I haven't been _that_ bad." Mitchie argued, but from the looks the others gave her, she realised that maybe she had. "Sorry guys, it's only three more days then I'll have plenty of free time."

"Yeah but we won't be here for much longer then." Jason said sadly, surprising Mitchie. She'd been expecting them to stay a while longer. Shane had told her they were taken an entire summer off to make up for the busy year.

"You won't?" She looked at Shane, hoping he'd answer her in more detail.

"We've got some stuff we agreed to do a while back and can't really back out of." He explained. He refused to tell her more, knowing she would be told later, her parents well aware of the situation.

"Well that sucks." Mitchie said grumpily. "I don't want you guys to leave." They, including Becs, were the only friends she had. They treated her normally, not like the weirdo with no memory.

"Mitchie, why are you looking at the menu?" Becs asked as she realised what her friend was doing. Since the first time Mitchie'd come to the cafe after the accident she had always ordered the same thing. She'd done it so often Becs knew her order off by heart.

"I thought I'd try something new today." Mitchie explained as she glanced through the cake section of the menu.

"That's madness!" Becs exclaimed, causing the others to laugh. "You've been watching too many Sainsbury's adverts."

"No, it's not that. I don't know what it is really; I just fancy something totally different."

"What, not even hot chocolate?" The waitress asked in complete shock. Mitchie smirked when she saw Becs grasp Jason's arm overdramatically as if it was the only way to prevent herself from fainting. "What _can_ I get you then?"

"A cup of tea and a scone." The others looked at her like she was crazy.

"You're going all British on us." Nate commented. Mitchie just shrugged, she couldn't help that being what she was craving.

The others placed their orders and Becs disappeared behind the counter to get them.

"I'll be right back." Jason excused himself, heading for the toilets, luckily leaving the others alone to discuss the possible couple.

"She doesn't like him? Are you blind? She's _so_ into him." Mitchie said with a smile.

"How can you tell?" Shane asked.

"Well first, she took the chance to touch him whenever she could, the whole grabbing his arm thing and also slapping his shoulder, _so_ flirty. Then there's the fact she spent ages at our table and kept throwing glances at him every few seconds. Oh and I've never seen her smile that much in all the time I've known her." Mitchie explained having subtly watched her friend's actions very closely. "Not to mention the fact that whenever we talked about celebrity crushes in the past Jason was always the first person she mentioned. She once told me that if she ever met Jason Green she would do everything she could to get his attention. She totally has thing for him."

The others' mouths hung open in shock at how much she had picked up in such a short time.

"Is everyone so easy to read?" Nate asked.

"Not everyone. It helps if you know them quite well. Some people work really hard to keep their feelings secret, but most of the time if you watch people carefully enough you'll be able to tell how they feel." Mitchie explained.

Jason and Becs returned moments later, with the waitress deciding to join them while she took her break.

"These guys were telling me you're going to be in a talent show." Becs said to Mitchie, "I didn't even know you could sing."

"I can't really but they're insisting so I don't have a choice." Mitchie said, throwing a deliberate look at Shane. "Oh, that reminds me," She continued before anyone could just in and attempt to tell her how good she was, "I know the show's in three days and it's not much warning but, well, I think Steffi told the head that you guys are staying with me because he called me into his office this afternoon and somehow knew about you and kinda asked if you could perform at the talent show. I know it's late notice and you're meant to be on holiday and I'd totally understand if you don't want to but I said I'd ask so I had to." She wittered on.

"What do you guys think?" Shane asked, knowing his opinion on the matter but wanting to check theirs too.

"Well, I don't mind performing but isn't that a bit unfair on the other competitors?" Jason said, causing a giggle, one Mitchie had never heard, to escape Becs' lips.

"I'm guessing we'd just be performing at the end or something?" Nate clarified, basically ignoring Jason's daft comment.

"Yeah, I believe so. I think he'd let you perform whenever you want to be honest, he just thinks you'll be good publicity meaning they can sell more tickets and make more money." Mitchie stated.

"Good to know we're wanted for the right reasons." Shane replied sarcastically. "I guess we could perform."

"Really?" Mitchie said excitedly. Sure, she was their friend but she was a fan too and any opportunity to see them live was good in her eyes.

"It would give us an opportunity to try out one of our new songs." Nate reasoned.

"Let's do it!" Jason exclaimed excitedly.

"You guys are seriously the best." Mitchie squealed.

"So can anyone come to this talent show or is it strictly parents, students and special guest stars?" Becs asked hopefully.

"I reckon I could get you a ticket," Mitchie said, "even though I know you only want to come to see these guys, not to support me." She was mock offended.

"Yep, that's totally true." Becs teased her friend.

_CR-CR-CR_

Mitchie sighed happily as she placed her pen down, her final piece of homework for the year done. She wandered down the hallway, leaning against Shane's doorway.

"Do you think he'll ever ask Becs out?" She asked, drawing his attention. Shane looked up, pleased to see her there.

"What, Jase?" Mitchie nodded, "He might ask her to dinner or something, but only if he's certain she'll say yes. He's not too good at putting himself out there." Shane explained as he moved to stand beside her.

"She'd say yes in a heartbeat, I'm one hundred percent certain." Mitchie said confidently. "When are you going back to America?" She wanted a definite date so she could prepare herself for it properly.

"Two weeks on Saturday we have to be there so a day or two before then probably. It hasn't been decided yet. We have to fly back together apparently because there are rumours going around that we're splitting up." Sometimes the press caused the most ridiculous precautions to be put in place.

"How desperate are the press for a story?" Mitchie asked, well aware there had been lots of sightings of the guys together by both press and public while they'd been staying with her.

"Mitchie! Shane! Dinner!" Connie yelled up the stairs.

"Excellent, I'm hungry." Shane said happily, grabbing her hand and pulling her downstairs.

_CR-CR-CR_

As Mitchie reached the kitchen she was surprised to see not only her parents but also Jason, Nate and Caitlyn sat at the table. Though Connie had offered to cook for them most nights they were often off doing other stuff at dinner time. They hadn't mentioned coming over earlier.

"What are you guys doing here?" Mitchie asked as she took her usual seat.

"Connie said she was making the famous Torres burgers tonight so we couldn't resist coming for dinner." Caitlyn explained and Mitchie could practically see the hunger in her eyes.

"Actually it was more like Caitlyn insisted we come and eat here and said she'd refuse to help us out with our last minute talent show performance if we didn't come. But the burgers are definitely worth it." Nate explained. Though that didn't sound so bad a threat, the song they had chosen to perform needed to be produced and Caitlyn was the only one available to do it.

"It does smell very good in here." Jason commented, the smell of burgers filling his nostrils as Steve carried in a plate of recently barbequed meat.

"You can't get anything better than a Torres burger." Mitchie explained as her parents filled the remaining seats and everyone dug in.

"This is _so_ good." Shane stated as he started his third burger, clearly hungry despite their earlier cafe visit.

"Mitchie, did you get all of your homework done?" Connie asked as the plate of burgers was rapidly emptied. She'd never seen her food be eaten so quickly.

"Yeah, I just finished my last piece. I need to do some revision but I'm basically ready for both my exams too." Mitchie explained. She was relieved to know term was so close to coming to an end.

"Do you think we can tell her then?" Steve asked, gaining Mitchie's full attention. The smirks that were covering every other occupant of the table's faces alerted her to the fact that they all knew something she didn't. She got a sense it wasn't only the burgers they were all there for.

"We did say we would once she'd finished all her work." Connie said, building Mitchie's suspense.

"Please tell me." She practically begged, causing the others to laugh.

"Okay," Connie said, pausing just to tease her. "This lot have informed us that they must return to America in two weeks time as they have agreed to help Shane's uncle run Camp Rock for another summer." Knowing that was the reason they were leaving her made Mitchie less annoyed about it, though she didn't understand the look they were all still giving her.

"Last year you spent months begging us to allow you to go." Steve continued, "And we know how much you wanted to return to the USA earlier in the year."

"I talked to Brown." Shane said, taking over. It had been his idea and so Connie and Steve had agreed to let him tell her the big news. "He remembers you from last summer, turns out you and your mom made quite an impression on him. He wants you to come back." Mitchie didn't quite believe what she was hearing.

"Does that mean..." She trailed off, wanting to hear him say the words.

"When we leave to go back to America in two weeks, you're coming with us." She squealed in excitement, flinging her arms around him. She couldn't believe how lucky she was.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you." She repeated over and over again as she walked around the table, hugging them all.

"There's one condition." Jason said as he received his hug.

"What's that?" She asked.

"You have to help me build a bird house." He said with a smile, though he was completely serious. He hadn't quite forgiven Shane for forgetting last summer.

"I'll look forward to it." Mitchie replied.

**AN: We reached ten reviews for the last chapter so I thought I would update again. This story is now nearing its conclusion. I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter. I'll put another up later today if I get plenty of reviews for this. **


	15. Preparations For The Show

Chapter 15 – Preparations For The Show

It was the big day. Mitchie sat staring out the window, her nerves starting to get the better of her. Why had she agreed to let Shane talk her into this? She was just going to end up making a fool of herself and Steffi was never going to let her live it down.

"How are you feeling?" Shane asked as he entered the room. He'd seen her nerves last night when he'd been saying goodnight and wanted to make sure she wasn't going to make herself ill with worry during the day.

"I don't think I can do it Shane. I can't go up on stage in front of so many people; I'll just end up ruining a good song." Mitchie aired her fears.

"Listen to me Mitch, you will be absolutely fine. You are amazingly talented and you will wow that crowd with how good you are, they won't see it coming." He walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist. Over the last week they had become incredibly close, with Caitlyn making constant hints at them getting into a relationship, though Mitchie would always fight against it claiming nothing could happen between her and a world famous superstar, especially when they lived thousands of miles apart.

"I hear the words but I can't get my brain to accept it. "

"In that case we will spend the entire day not thinking about it until just before the show that way things will be easier." Mitchie turned around in his arms, staring up into his chocolate brown eyes.

"You're too good to me." She whispered. She couldn't believe how much her life had changed. She may not remember much from the past but now she had some incredible memories to replace the missing ones.

"You deserve to be treated well Mitch and if you can't see that then I'll have to prove it to you." They moved over to her bed, taking a seat beside each other.

"What's going to happen to us?" Shane was going back to America in a week time to visit his parents for the first time in over a year before heading to his uncle's camp. The boys were all flying back together a week before Mitchie and Caitlyn after Mitchie had insisted Shane needed to fix things with his parents. She didn't want him to go, but she knew he hated his family situation.

"We'll talk on the phone, you can come stay with me whenever you want, I'm sure your parents will be more willing to let you now they know me better, after all they're letting you go to camp. Trust me, we'll see each other much more than you expect." He'd make sure he visited her every chance he got. He wasn't going to let her get away again.

Mitchie stared at him, trying to decide whether to tell him how she felt. It had only been a few weeks yet she couldn't mistake the way her skin tingled every time they touched, the way her heart fluttered when their eyes connected. It just seemed natural to feel that way.

"Shane I..."

"Mitchie, breakfast. Last day of school, you don't want to be late." Connie yelled up the stairs, accidentally interrupting at the worst moment

"Coming mom" Mitchie yelled back before grabbing Shane's hand and dragging him down the stairs, losing her nerve to finish the sentence. As they headed into the kitchen Shane's eyes rested on her, his mind filled with different endings to her sentence.

"Pancakes and bacon, the perfect breakfast for the last day of school." Connie said, placing two plates in front of them. This was what she always cooked Mitchie before summer began, it had become a family tradition. Shane smiled. He'd realise while staying with the Torres's just how nice spending time as a family could be and how much he wanted that with his family.

"Are you coming home before the show or are we meeting there?" Connie asked, trying to work out her plan for the day.

"I'll stay at school because they want us to have warm up time and such." Mitchie explained before turning to Shane as she realised there was information she was supposed to give him. "Mr Malarky would like you three at school by half 6 so he can make sure things are set up as well as possible for you. I swear he is obsessed with the fact Connect 3 are performing at his school." Shane laughed.

"I'll make sure we're there on time." Shane promised, knowing that if he told Nate the time they were meant to arrive he would force them to be early.

Soon Mitchie was off to her last day. With all exams complete the day would mainly be pointless. Lessons would consist of watching films and eating junk food. That's how things were at the end of term.

Taking her usual seat in homeroom, Mitchie was surprised to find Tia sat in her old seat beside her.

"Hey Mitch." Tia greeted nervously. She'd been trying to get her attention all week but Mitchie had resolutely ignored her. Today was no different. "Please just give me a chance to explain." Mitchie could hear the sadness in her voice but she wouldn't give in. Tia had really hurt her and she doubted any reason she had would make Mitchie want to be forgiving. Things weren't how you think Mitchie, if you remembered the past, you'd realise that." Tia sounded almost desperate.

"Miss Thompkins please be quiet." Their form tutor instructed Tia.

Once the bell rang, indicating the end of form time, Mitchie rushed from the room, not wanting to give Tia a chance to follow her.

_CR-CR-CR_

The day was passing by so slowly. It was only lunchtime but to Mitchie it felt like it should be performance time. She couldn't help but wonder why it was that when you had something to look forward to, it took longer to arrive.

She sat alone at one of the tables in the lunch room, slowly munching her way through her food. She wanted to text Shane and the others so she'd have someone to talk to but she was well aware that they were busy rehearsing for their performance later that evening and that Caitlyn would have stolen all of their phones to prevent them getting distracted.

"Mitchie?" She heard a rather timid voice say. She turned around. "I'm Mary, I'm in your music class." Mitchie had seen the short blonde girl in class every day. Though she seemed quite shy and never really spoke, Mitchie knew she had talent from the performances she'd put on in class.

"Hey, yeah I know who you are. You want to sit down?" Mitchie asked, motioning to the seat next to her. Mary thanked her before taking a seat.

"I hear you're performing in the talent show later on?" Mary asked.

"Yeah, well if I don't let stage fright get to me." Mitchie replied. Whilst she was okay with the idea of going on stage now, with the performance still seven hours away, she wasn't so sure she'd feel the same come show time.

"I wanted to say good luck. I know Steffi thinks she' like, the best thing since sliced bread, but you've got actual talent."

Mitchie beamed widely at the girl beside her, the compliment she'd just been given coming so unexpectedly.

"Good to know that's what you think Mary." Mitchie practically growl at the sound of her arch enemy's voice. Steffi walked around the table, leaning on it in front of the two girls.

"You seriously think she," Steffi pointed accusatorily at Mitchie, "can beat me?" She scoffed at the suggestion.

"She's better than you." Mary muttered quietly, wanting to defend Mitchie but lacking to confidence to pull it off loudly.

"You're a joke Mitchie, you realise that right? If you think you have a hope of pulling off a good performance tonight you must be seriously deranged." With that she strutted off. Mitchie rolled her eyes, very much looking forward to a summer away from school.

"Why does she think it's okay to act like that?" Mary asked when Steffi was completely gone from view. "She has to have someone to attack every year."

"She just likes to put others down to make herself feel better. I assume I did something to her earlier in the year which is why I ended up on her bad side." Mitchie reasoned. She was enjoying actually having someone to talk to at lunch again. "She makes this place hell."

"Yeah. Try living with her." Mary said as she stole a chip from Mitchie's plate while Mitch gave her a confused look. "Wow, you really don't remember anything do you?" Mary was surprised.

"Sadly not. You live with Steffi?" Mary nodded.

"I'm her step sister. Why my mom decided to marry her dad, I have no idea. He's almost as bad as his daughter. At least I only have to put up with them for one more year." Mitchie instantly felt sympathy for her lunchtime companion. At least at the end of the day she could get away from Steffi. The idea of going home and her still being there was unthinkable. "Anyway I should be getting to class. It was nice talking to you." Mary stood to leave.

"I'll see you at the show tonight?" Mitchie asked.

"Definitely. I'll be the one cheering loudly for you." Mary replied, glad she'd taken the chance to get to know her classmate before term ended. "Good luck." She said encouragingly before walking away, leaving Mitchie feeling much more confident than she had before.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Come on, we're going to be late!" Nate was practically pulling his hair out in frustration. They'd been waiting at Mitchie's for half an hour for Shane. The middle band member was insisting on making sure he looked perfect.

"Chill dude, I'm here." Shane said as he bounded down the stairs. Nate, Jason and Caitlyn looked shocked at the pop star's new look.

"What happened to you?" Jason asked.

"I got a haircut. No big." Shane shrugged, grabbing his guitar case. "We better get going, don't want to be late." He opened the door and walked to Nate's car, waiting for his friend to unlock the boot.

"I'll be in the audience with Becs for Mitchie's performance then I'll slip backstage to see you before you go on, okay?" Caitlyn confirmed with her boyfriend, giving him a brief peck on the lips before practically shoving him out the door. She was remaining at the Torres household for a while longer, getting a lift to the show with Mitchie's parents.

"So, seriously, what's with the new do?" Nate asked as he climbed into the driver's seat, motioning to the newly cropped locks Shane was modelling. It was the shortest the other two had ever seen it.

"I wanted to go for something different. A new look to match our new songs. More stylish, you know." Shane explained casually.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with Mitchie mentioning the other day that she preferred guys with short hair would it?" Jason suggested.

"No dude, I don't let anyone influence what I do." Shane claimed, but the redness of his cheeks told his friends otherwise.

"Do you reckon it's going to be a good audience tonight?" Jason asked, deciding not to tease his friend any further.

"It's at a school full of squealing teenagers so yeah, I reckon our appearance will go down quite well." Shane stated. "Mitchie said it sold out once they announced we were performing."

"How's she doing with the whole stage fright thing?" Nate asked.

"Alright, I think. But if she's anything like I used to be she won't start freaking out until after the show's begun."

"I remember you before our first performance at Camp Rock." Jason recalled, "I believe we actually had to lift you on stage and start our song twice because you totally froze up." Shane hadn't fully gotten past his stage fright until Final Jam. Though it got easier at every jam they took part in, he would always freak out just before taking to the stage.

"It's quite impressive how much better you are now." Nate commented. He'd almost forgotten his friend was prone to reacting like that. Between that, Jason's ability to be distracted by birds and Nate's obsession with perfection, their first few rehearsals as a band had been fraught with tension. They'd come a long way from those days and not a day went by when they weren't proud of all they'd achieved.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Ten minutes until show time." Mr Ditune called to all the acts waiting backstage. They'd had their sound checks, changed into their costumes and were now all hanging apprehensively backstage.

Mitchie stood at the back of the room, her nerves starting to get the better of her. She'd heard some of the other performances during sound check, thinking they all sounded a hundred times better than her.

"Boo!" Shane yelled, appearing behind her and making her jump out of her skin. "How are you doing?" He could see the fear in her eyes and it made him more determined to get her onto the stage so she could see it wasn't as bad as she thought.

"Not great." She said. Not only was her fear fighting to get the better of her, her head was starting to pound and she'd left her medication at home. "I don't think I can do this Shane."

"Mitch, you can. I believe in you. You are going to walk out there and show the audience everything I see in you; your talent, your confidence, your beauty." Her cheeks turned full on tomato red. "You can do this Mitch. Don't be afraid. You just have to believe in yourself."

On stage the curtains rose, eliciting an excited scream from the packed audience. Mr Ditune took his position in the spotlight as the presenter for the evening.

"Hello everyone and welcome to the school's fifth annual end of year talent show. We've had a very successful year and now we get to bring it to an end with a bang. Not only do we have some very talented students who will be performing for you, we also have an amazing guest act who will take to the stage at the end of the show. So, without any further ado, let's get this show on the road." The audience applauded as the first act, a thirteen year old tap dancer, took to the stage.

"I really don't know Shane. What if I forget the words, I am prone to forget things after all."

"Mitchie, breathe." She followed his instructions. "You won't forget the words and even if you do Caitlyn is in the audience and, knowing her, she'll start to sing along from her seat to prompt you. And anyway, I haven't heard the whole song yet. If you don't perform it now, I won't get to hear our masterpiece in full effect."

Mitchie sighed, knowing Shane wouldn't let her back out now. He'd been so much help over the last few weeks and they'd worked hard on the song, she couldn't let him down, especially when she'd banned him from hearing the final version so it was a surprise.

"I'll be okay?" She asked, needing him to say it once more to persuade her.

"You'll be brilliant." He replied, engulfing her in a tight hug.

"Please give it up for our second act. Steffi and The Steffettes!" Mr Ditune called from the stage.

"They seriously called themselves that? She's far too like Tess." Shane muttered.

**AN: You gave me ten reviews so I'm giving you another chapter. Thank you for all the positive response. This story will be over by the end of the week and after that I don't know how much time I'll have to write, so it may be the end of my writing until Christmas. Please keep reviewing, I'll try and upload more tomorrow!**


	16. Performances

**Disclaimer: Don't own CR1 or 2 or Falling Down by Selena Gomez or Different Summers by Demi Lovato (the songs used in this chapter).**

Chapter 16 – Performances

Steffi and her five minions walked out on stage, their sequined dresses shimmering in the lights. They got into their starting positions, backs to the audience, heads down, a spotlight fixed on their leader. From the side of the stage Mitchie could tell this was going to be an over dramatic performance.

_Oh oh, oh oh ooh woah oh oh_

_Oh oh oh oh ooh woah oh oh_

_You walk and talk like you're some new sensation_

_You walk in circles you don't need an invitation_

_You spend your money you can't get no satisfaction_

_You play it right so you can get the right reaction_

_It won't be long my darling_

_Pick up the phone nobody's on it_

_Where are your friends now baby_

_All of the ones supposed to be there for_

They jumped around the stage, performing perfectly in sync dance moves. It was clear they'd rehearsed this many, many times. If nothing else, it was definitely getting the audience pumped up

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_The world starts spinning out_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_Now it's not all about_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_You know I'll be around_

_When you're falling down_

_Falling down_

Mitchie couldn't believe how repetitive the song was. Sure, it was catchy, it would probably be stuck in her head for days, she just didn't think it was a 'great' song.

"If she's your main competition then you've got this thing in the bad." Shane whispered to her.

_What's outta place when you look into the mirror_

_The truth is buried but the lies are getting clearer_

_Your eyes are fixed your smile is so elastic_

_You give me roses but they're all just made of plastic_

The lights dimmed, leaving just Steffi in the spotlight. As she belted out the refrain the five Steffettes approached their leader, each taking hold of part of her dress.

_It won't be long my darling_

_Pick up the phone nobody's on it_

_Where are your friends now baby_

_All of the ones supposed to be there for_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_The world starts spinning out_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_Now it's not all about _

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_You know I'll be around_

_When you're falling down_

_Falling_

The Steffettes pulled, deliberately ripping Steffi's dress from her body, leaving her in bright pink hot pants and a black vest top, her name spelled out in sequins across the front. Mitchie laughed at the cheesy move.

_Smile for the camera _

_Everybody's looking at yah_

_Smile for the camera_

_And we're all about to trust yah_

_Smile for the camera, camera, camera_

_Smile for the camera_

_Who's gonna catch ya?_

As the music slowed, all the girls danced in slow motion, their movements very over exaggerated, before jumping up and down hyperactively as the beat picked up again.

Mitchie laughed at Dana jumped a bit too enthusiastically, failing to land on her stiletto heel. She was literally falling down.

_You_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_The world starts spinning out_

_You_

_When you're falling down_

_Now it's not all about you _

_When you're falling down _

_You know I'll be around_

The Steffettes gathered in a semi-circle before moving as one, lifting Steffi into the air. The shake in her voice as they held her up showed how little trust she had in them

_When you're falling down_

_Falling_

_Smile for the camera_

_Everybody's looking at yah_

_Smile for the camera _

_And we're all about to trust yah._

Steffi threw her head back a little too dramatically as the song came to a close. The movement threw her off balanced and before she could stop herself she slipped from her clones' grip, landing with a loud bump as the lights faded to black.

She strutted off stage and whilst the loud round of applause she was receiving covered her angry ranting from the audience, everyone backstage could hear it clearly.

"You imbeciles. I tell you to do one simple thing and you manage to muck it up! You're all completely useless!"

Mitchie wanted to continue listening, finding the situation all highly comical, but Shane tapped her on the shoulder, informing her there was someone who really wanted to talk to her. She turned around to see a nervous looking Tia stood nearby.

"Mitchie, I know you're going on stage really soon but please, just give me a minute to try and explained." Tia begged. Mitchie glanced at Shane, not sure what to do.

"Give her a chance. Someone once told me that everyone deserves a second chance." Shane said, well aware of how much Mitchie hated not being able to talk to Tia.

"Five minutes, that's it." Mitchie said as she followed Tia to a quieter part of the green room, still uncertain she could trust her, though aware she hadn't been on the stage with Steffi as she had expected.

"What's your excuse then?" Mitchie asked. The timing was so convenient that Mitchie found it hard to believe this was anything other than a trick by Steffi to distract Mitchie from her performance.

"I didn't do it to hurt you." Tia said. Now she had Mitchie's attention she wasn't sure how to explain why she had done it, especially with Mitchie's lack of knowledge of how things were before Christmas.

"Yeah, sure, you spend four months pretending to be my friend, only to one day suddenly reveal that actually all that time you've been lying to me and using everything I'd told you about myself against me? Nope, doesn't sound like you were trying to hurt me at all." Mitchie replied sarcastically. She really wasn't in the mood for this, with her performance minutes away and the pain in her head getting worse by the second. She just wanted this evening to be over and to be back home lazing about on the sofa with her friends.

"It wasn't like that." Tia said. She desperately wanted Mitchie to believe her.

"Whatever. You know, I don't care that you're actually friends with Steffi, I don't really care that you lied to me for four months, what I care about is the fact you put in all that effort just to be nasty. I thought you were better than that, clearly I was wrong." Mitchie sighed, tempted to walk away.

"If you could remember the past you'd realise it wasn't like that. If you'd just listen to me for long enough for me to re-explain everything to you then you'd understand, but you don't Mitchie. I know I upset you, I know the way everything came out was really harsh, but it had to be that way, otherwise things would have just gotten worse." Tia's eyes filled with tears.

"What now all this is my fault because I don't remember? That's not my fault. Whatever it is, you had four months to remind me!" Mitchie yelled.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Tia was now full on crying and for a brief moment Mitchie wanted to wrap her arms around her and tell her everything was going to be okay. "We were friends you know. It wasn't all a lie. But sometimes life is complicated and you can't have what you want. You used to understand that." She glanced from Mitchie to Shane, "I guess you don't any more. Don't worry; I'll leave you alone." With that Tia walked off, just as Mitchie heard the act before her finish their performance.

"You ready?" Shane asked, realising that now may not be the best time for Mitchie to confront her fears. They watched Mr Ditune take to the stage once more.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Mitchie said, though her voice made Shane think otherwise. "Have to confront my fears sometime." The adrenaline rushing through her from the argument gave her a sense of confidence, distracting her from her nerves. As she heard Mr Ditune start his introduction for her, she moved closer to the stage, but Shane held her back.

"Mitch, there's something I have to tell you. I know the timing isn't great but if I don't do it now, I'm not sure I'll ever get up the nerve to do it again." He took her shoulders, forcing her to look directly at him. If he was going to do this, he wanted to be able to read her reaction.

"She's had a tough year but is by far one of the most talented students at this school." She could hear Mr Ditune say on stage.

"Mitchie Torres." Shane said, taking a deep breath before blurting out his feelings. "I have never met anyone who makes me feel the way you do. Every moment with you makes me feel like I am dreaming. I lost you once, I won't let it happen again because Mitch,"

"Our last competitor of the evening," Mr Ditune continued, coming close to the end of his introduction.

"I am truly, deeply in love with you." With that Shane leant in and pressed his lips against hers. He filled the kiss with all the passion and emotion he could, wanting to prove he meant everything he had just said.

"Let's hear it for Mitchie Torres!" Mr Ditune called, indicating she should take to the stage. Shane pulled away, a dopey smile on his face.

"Go rock it poppet." He said, quoting the uncle who had originally, in an odd way, brought them together.

Mitchie stumbled towards the centre of the stage; a microphone was shoved in her hand on the way. As she stood in the spotlight she felt light headed, unable to believe everything that had just happened in the space of a few minutes. She heard the backing track start to play, picked up her guitar, which had already been brought on stage, and took a deep breath. She was determined to make this the best performance ever. This song was for Shane and she wanted to do it justice.

_We're like a melody with no words_

_Until we figure it out_

_We sing la la la la la_

_I know it's simple yeah but it's worked_

_Right up til now_

_Cos up til now yeah_

_Everyday's been like a dream world_

_But now you're not just in my head_

_Oh no._

She'd been lucky enough to find the guy of her dreams. He stood at the side of the stage, smiling at her proudly. As she sang, his earlier words repeated themselves in her head. He loved her, but did she love him back?

_When we remember_

_Different summers_

_It's like tossing your heart_

_To see where it lands_

_Heads is easy_

_Tails is harder to plan_

_If we're starting all over _

_Again and again and again_

They had started from scratch, well at least she had, only two weeks ago. Yet now he was her best friend, she'd do anything for him. She had a whole summer with him to look forward to. Now she knew how he felt, did that change things? He'd thrown his heart out there for her, could she do the same for him when, to her, they'd known each other for so little time.

_You know that I can't help but wonder_

_What's gonna happen next_

_I'm a little curious oh oh yeah_

_Every star that I stood under_

_When you were under it too_

_Did you ever think about us_

_I hope you did cos I can tell you_

_That's something I'll never forget_

_I won't forget_

It was a memory with him that was the first thing she had fully remembered with any clarity. Did this mean her relationship with him was more important than she'd realised? She had never felt the way she did when he was around. In a fortnight he'd helped her more than anyone else had in four months. On top of that he'd gotten her on stage, something she thought she would never do. She looked out at the audience, taking in her moment in the spotlight. From the looks on people's faces it seemed her song was going down well.

_If we remember different summers_

_It's like tossing your heart _

_To see where it lands_

_Heads is easy_

_Tails is harder to plan_

_If we're starting all over again_

As the bridge started, Mitchie's thoughts turned to Caitlyn who had helped her write all the music and finish the lyrics. She'd even persuaded Nate and Jason to record the backing music and keep it a secret from Shane. She thought of the relationship Nate and Caitlyn shared. They lived in the same country, but still thousands of miles apart. They barely got to see each other, yet they made it work. If Caitlyn could do that, why couldn't she?

_Only friends_

_Just beginning_

_But I hope that we find it again_

_So we can_

_Go from here oh_

_When we remember different summers_

_It's like tossing your heart to see where it lands_

_Heads is easy_

_Tails is harder to plan_

_If we're starting all over again_

_Again and again and again and again_

As the audience started clapping along with her, she glanced to the side of the stage. Her eyes locked with Shane's and she could read every emotion in their deep brown hue. She realised then what she should have known all along. She loved him. She'd loved him even before she met him and over the past two weeks that feeling had grown stronger and stronger. She couldn't live without him. She didn't care about the distance, nor that he was famous. She didn't care that he had girls constantly throwing themselves at him. All she cared about was the fact the he was Shane Grey, her pop star, her jerk, the boy she loved.

_Again and again and again_

_When we remember _

_Different summers._

She didn't have the same memories as him about their summer spent together, but her feelings were identical.

The lights brightened and Mitchie looked around in disbelief at the cheering audience. She'd done it, she'd gone on stage and performed. She hadn't passed out or forgotten the words, she hadn't messed up at all. Better than that, the audience actually liked her. She gave a quick bow before rushing off stage and into Shane's awaiting arms.

"You did it!" He whispered to her, so proud of how great a performance she'd given.

"That was amazing!" She exclaimed happily as adrenaline once more rushed through her body.

"_You_ were amazing." Shane said, and he truly meant it. Her performance had been stunning, her voice even better than when he'd heard it at Final Jam.

Mitchie pulled away from him and stared into his eyes. She smiled brightly before letting four words escape her lips;

"I love you too."

There, at the side of the stage, they share what was technically their fourth kiss (although Mitchie only remembered three of them) and what would be remembered as the first time they both understood how the other felt.

"Excuse me." Nate's voice cut in, sounding very awkward. They pulled apart and glared at him, not impressed. "Sorry to interrupt but we have to get on stage. There'll be plenty of time for this," he pointed his finger at both of them, "later, I'm sure." Shane started to apologise to Mitchie but she made him stop, insisting he get on stage so she could hear him play.

**AN: Sorry about putting two songs in this chapter, it changed a bit from my original plan and was necessary. Also sorry this update was later than I expected, I spent my day watching Camp Rock 2 (finally! If you want to discuss it with me, let me know!) and then going to see a theatre production of Hairspray, but once I got home I got straight on with this. Hope you enjoyed it, let me know what you think. **


	17. Critical

**AN: This is the penultimate chapter. Yeah, sad to say this story is very close to being finished. Depending on how much free time I have and how many reviews this gets, you may get the final instalment later today. I hope you all enjoy this. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own 'Critical' from Jonas LA, though it is an amazing song. **

Chapter 17 – Critical

"Give it up for our special guest stars: Connect 3!" The crowd erupted into ear splitting screams as the guys took to the stage. Nate sat at the large white piano which had been set up specifically for them, whilst Jason and Shane grabbed their guitars.

"This is a new song we only finished a few days ago." Shane said into his microphone, causing more screams. "We hope you like it."

_There's a storm coming up_

_And I gotta prepare myself_

_This feeling's getting stronger every day_

_Something's creeping inside_

_Everything is about to change_

_Gotta face the fact_

_That I can't walk away._

Though Nate was singing lead, this song meant the same to all three band members. Over the last year they'd all found love in various places and they felt more for the three girls in their lives than they ever thought they could. They all knew that eventually they'd be far away from the ones they loved and were well aware that when the time came, it would be almost impossible to leave.

_This is critical_

_I am feeling helpless_

_So hysterical_

_And this can't be healthy_

_I can't eat or sleep_

_When you're not with me_

_Baby you're the air I breathe_

_This is critical_

_So stuck on you._

"Mitch, you were amazing." Caitlyn whispered as she arrived at the side of the stage, Becs following close behind.

"I had no idea you had such talent." Becs said as Mitchie hugged them both before they turned their attention back to the stage.

"This song is _so_ about the two of you." Becs commented.

"I don't think we're the only ones it's about." Caitlyn replied, sharing a knowing look with Mitchie.

"What do you mean?"

"Let's just say I think you've attracted a certain Mr Green's attention." Mitchie explained, leaving Becs open mouthed.

_Used to have everything figured out_

_But it's different now_

_When you came _

_You saw_

_Your conquered my heart_

_Used to laugh when you smile_

_Wanna stay for a little while_

_I don't wanna go_

_I just want you_

_In my arms_

Steffi stood the other side of the stage, a scowl plastered across her face. Today was supposed to be her day, she was supposed to be the star. But no, Mitchie had ruined that, getting close with her step sister, winning the audience's approval and having Shane Grey fall in love with her.

But, she thought as she stared across the stage at her enemy happily chatting with two girls she didn't recognise, what if Shane knew the truth, knew why Mitchie and her didn't get along. Would he still feel the same for her then? Steffi was determined to find out and she knew exactly how to do so. If Mitchie didn't remember what happened earlier in the school year, then she'd just have to remind her.

_This is critical_

_I am feeling helpless_

_So hysterical _

_And this can't be healthy_

_I can't eat or sleep_

_When you're not with me_

_Baby you're the air I breathe_

_This is critical yeah_

_So stuck on you_

_Used to run and hide_

_Used to back out of love_

_But I can't escape this time _

_Oh no_

Shane wanted to be with her forever. He wouldn't let anything get in the way of that this time. They'd have to perfect summer together, then he'd visit her every few weeks and even pay for her to fly over to him. He wasn't going to run away this time, not like he had done in the past. A broken heart was what turned him into a bad boy of the press. Without even realising it Mitchie had helped him pick up the pieces and made him whole again. She would forever hold his heart in her hands.

_This is critical_

_I am feeling helpless_

_So hysterical_

_And this can't be healthy_

_I can't eat or sleep_

_When you're not with me_

_You're the air I breathe_

_This is critical_

_Yeah_

_Baby it's so critical_

"Oi. Torres." Steffi's familiar greeting was heard and the three girls turned around, distracted from the song which had been written for them. "We need to talk."

"Can it wait Steffi?" Mitchie said, attempting to turn her attention back to Connect 3's performance

_So critical yeah_

_And I like you_

"You want to know why I hate you?" Steffi asked as her clones surrounded her, unsure what was going on but knowing they'd be expected to back her up.

"No, to be honest I don't really care." Mitchie replied, not bothering to look at her as she spoke.

_It's so critical_

_So critical_

_Yeah_

_So stuck on you._

"You're a fake." Steffi stated as if it were a fact. Mitchie spun on her heel.

"Excuse me?" She said, not sure what her enemy was implying.

"You heard me." Steffi replied as the final chords of music were played gently, followed by cheers and applause. Clearly the audience had liked the song.

Steffi smirked, knowing she had timed this to perfection.

"You're a fake. You put on this whole innocent girl act, but none of its real." Steffi continued as she saw Shane heading over.

"Steffi, stop." It surprised Mitchie to hear Tia's voice say this.

"What's it to you Tia? No one cares what you think." It was clear to all around that the relationship between Tia and Steffi was not in a good state, especially with the venom in Steffi's tone and the disdain in her eyes.

"Mitch, what's going on?" Shane asked, appearing at her side.

"I'm guessing she told you all about how she has serious stage fright, right Shane?" Steffi continued, moving closer to Mitchie in an attempt to be more threatening. Shane nodded, unsure what that had to do with anything. "Yeah, she told me that too. But it's all a bunch of lies." Mitchie had no idea what Steffi was talking about. By now everyone in the backstage area had gathered around, interested in what was occurring.

"Mitchie, do you have any idea what she'd talking about?" Caitlyn whispered.

"None at all."

"She told me all about how the idea of going on stage terrified her." Steffi continued, loving all the attention she was getting from this. "So I helped her. We worked on a song to perform together at the Christmas show, decided which parts we'd sing each. Then two days before performance night she comes to me and says she wants to challenge herself, go on stage alone." Mitchie closed her eyes, the pain in her head, which had been constant through the night, growing in intensity. It was normal for it to ache when she was being reminded of past events but this was worse than usual. It felt as though someone had set fire to her brain. "I allowed her to do so, like the good friend I am, of course I didn't expect her to stab me in the back."

Tears pricked the back of Mitchie's eyes. This situation was familiar, but not because of what Steffi was saying. Something like this had happened before. She wished she'd brought her medication with her. She wanted to scream in agony.

"She went on stage and performed _our_ song, leaving me with nothing to sing. And of course she was a great success, no sign of fright when she got on stage. Does that sound familiar?" Steffi turned her gaze to Shane.

"Mitch, is that true?" Shane asked. Mitchie forced her eyes to open so she could look at him, only to see the hurt in his eyes. He believed Steffi; he thought she'd been lying to him.

"I don't know." She chocked out. She could barely talk; the pain seemed to be consuming her entire body. "I'm sorry." She whispered before running from the room. The way she said it was so like when she'd had that nightmare. It scared Shane.

"I don't care what she did to you in the past, in the future you will leave her alone." Shane commanded before rushing from the room, desperate to find the girl he loved.

"How dare you." Tia yelled at Steffi, shocking the people remaining in the room, and Steffi too.

"How dare I what?" Steffi spat. She'd had enough of Tia for one day. Her former spy had already screamed at her once, she didn't need her to do it again.

"That's not what happened and you know it. Why don't you grow up and stop being such a selfish, bratty, cow?" Tia exclaimed, causing gasps to echo round the room. No one spoke to Steffi like that and got away with it. "You know, the only reason people are friends with you is because you intimidate them, you're so horrible that people think that rather than stand up to you and have to put up with your pettiness, it's easier to just go along with what you say and do. God knows I did for long enough. Mitchie was the one person who stood up to you and just because she did, you decided to make her life hell. It wasn't like she hadn't been through enough already, oh no, you had to make it worse because that's what you do. You make the lives of everyone around you worse. I haven't got a clue how your family puts up with you."

"We don't." Mary yelled from the back of the group, receiving a deadly glare from Steffi. She knew she was going to get it later that night, once they got home, but she didn't care. She was sick of her step sister acting the way she did.

"Enjoy being in the spotlight while it lasts because once it fades you'll have no one left, while people like Mitchie will have the best friends anyone could ask for because she's the best friend anyone could have." Nate, Jason, Caitlyn and Becs started to clap, completely agreeing with everything Tia had just said. Steffi sneered at Tia, furious.

"Just because my father fired yours doesn't give you that right to attack me you pathetic little bitch." Steffi yelled as Tia turned on her heel to walk away. As the words left Steffi's mouth, Tia froze.

"Actually he quit because he couldn't stand working for your dad any longer." Tia corrected her, before continuing. "My dad's here tonight, where's your? Oh yeah, that's right, off with the wife who clearly means a lot more to him than his daughter." Tia knew it was a low blow, well aware how much Steffi hated the relationship she had with her dad, but it was the one thing which would hurt Steffi the most and she was sick of her thinking she could trample over everyone else and never get anything back.

_CR-CR-CR_

Shane could see Mitchie a little way in the distance, standing still in the car park, her head buried in her hands. He could hear her sobs breaking the night time silence. He ran faster, arriving beside her in seconds.

"Mitch?" He said, trying to get her attention. It was then he noticed she was shaking. "Mitchie, what's wrong?" She lowered her hands. Her face was deathly pale and Shane could see the fear in her eyes. "Mitch?" He was scared; he'd never seen her like this before. She grabbed his hand, holding onto it for dear life. Her breathing became quick and shallow.

"Shane, it hurts." She cried as tears dripped down her cheeks. Her entire brain felt as though it was being consumed by flames. "I can't breathe." She tightened her grip on his hand. "I'm scared." She sounded so young, so helpless. Shane wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her tight, his eyes never leaving her.

"It's going to be alright. I promise. You have to tell me what's wrong and we'll make it better, okay?" He told her, trying to sounds calm even though seeing her this way was terrifying him. He didn't know what to do.

"I...I..." The words failed to escape her lips. Instead she let out an ear piercing scream before her eye lids slammed shut and she went limp in his arms, losing consciousness.

"Mitchie?" Shane said frantically. He didn't understand what was going on. "Help!" He yelled, looking around the car park desperately, hoping someone else was around. He lowered himself and her to the ground, holding her against his chest as he knelt down. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, his fingers stumbling over the keys.

"Hello? I need an ambulance. It's an emergency. Please hurry." He said rapidly into the phone. He listened to the operator, giving her the necessary information. He glanced up as he heard four pairs of footsteps rushing towards him.

"Shane?" Caitlyn called. Noticing him knelt down beside her best friend she took off at full speed, panic running through her. "What happened?" She asked, shocked to see Mitchie's unconscious form.

"She was in pain then she screamed and passed out. I don't know what's going on." The fear he felt was clear in his voice.

"Have you phoned an ambulance?" Nate, always the calmest in stressful situations, asked. Shane nodded. "I'll go get Connie and Steve. If the ambulance comes before I get back, leave one of this lot here with instructions about where they're taking her." With that Nate took off, running back into the school.

"She'll be alright." Caitlyn said, kneeling beside Shane and wrapping her arm around his shoulders, attempting to give him the comfort she knew he needed.

"What if she's not?" Shane asked and for the first time in the entire year she'd known him, Caitlyn saw the young Grey cry. "I shouldn't have pushed her so far. I shouldn't have let he run off." Shane said. He looked down at her face which now looked peaceful compared to the look of agony she'd worn a few minutes earlier. He brushed some of the hair away from her eyes and leant down, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I'm so sorry." He whispered.

"It's not your fault Shane. You didn't hurt her and this time you chased after her." Caitlyn said. During the argument she couldn't help but notice how much similarity it held to a certain conflict almost a year ago with Mitchie's previous enemy, Tess Tyler. The doctors had said all along just one memory could cause a massive change to Mitchie's condition, maybe this was that memory.


	18. The Final Chapter

Chapter 18 - The Final Chapter

Darkness. Everywhere around her was a black nothingness. Where was Shane? He had been there when the darkness came; he'd held her in his arms and promised it would be okay.

"Will she be alright?" Mitchie heard a voice ask. It was so near, yet so far at the same time. She was awake, she could tell that. Yet all she could see was black upon black.

She thought of Caitlyn, knowing her friend would be worried. She'd fled from the room, leaving no indication of where she was going, just knowing she had to get away from the situation.

What about Tia? Mitchie hadn't meant what she'd said, but at the time she wasn't able to understand. Would she give her another chance once the darkness faded, or was that the end? Would they never be friends again?

And Becs. She'd been so shocked by the revelation of Jason's feelings. Sweet, sensitive, bird loving Jason, the most innocent of all her friends. Would he take a risk to get what he so desperately wanted? Was he standing by her bedside, waiting for her to awaken, avoiding asking Becs the single biggest question of his life all because of her? She tried to force her eye lids to peel apart but they felt heavy and resisted the action, almost as if they'd been glued together.

"Come on, let's leave her to rest. She'll wake up when she's ready." That voice she knew. It was clear as day. Nate. Trusty little Nate. He sounded calm, she liked that. She could imagine the others freaking out (it's not every day your friend faints in a car park) yet Nate would remain calm and in control. With him around she knew she was in safe hands, even if they weren't the hands she wanted.

"Shane." She muttered. He was all she needed. Though she thought she spoke only to herself, beyond the darkness they reacted.

"Wait." He was there, he hadn't left. He wasn't mad, not like in her nightmares where she'd scream for him to stay, tell him she was sorry for the lies and plead with him not to leave her. It was one memory, playing over and over like a song stuck on repeat. The memory was clear now, unlike the blurred uncertainty of her dreams. But he was here, he'd come back and they were in love. "Mitchie, can you hear me? Are you awake?" His voice broke through the blackness, giving her new determination to see light.

"Shane, I'm here. I need to wake up." She tried to say, though even to her own ears it came out as nothing more than a mumble. She tried to pry her eyes open once more, to move any part of her body, but it was out of her control. The darkness began to scare her; it was like a never ending pit she couldn't escape from. She didn't want to be stuck there forever.

"Can you go get Connie and Steve? Maybe she'll react more if she hears them." Her parents were there? Mitchie felt like she wanted to cry. They'd been through this before, she didn't want to put them through it again. How had she woken up last time? She couldn't remember. All she knew was that she'd been surrounded by black one second and the next everything was light.

She could hear small sobs coming from her left hand side. She tried to move her head to face the noise but it was pointless. Nothing she tried was working.

"She'll be okay." Mitchie heard Nate's voice again, this time he was soothing whoever was sobbing.

"But what if she's not? I swear if I ever see Steffi again I'll wring her neck." That was definitely Caitlyn. And though she knew Steffi wasn't completely at fault, she would quite enjoy seeing her friend attack the stiletto wearing show off. She chuckled at the image, a small smile gracing her lips.

"You can hear us, can't you?" Shane's voice whispered in her ear. She could practically feel his warm breath against the side of her face. Oh how she longed to turn her head just slightly, see into those chocolate brown eyes and feel his gentle lips against her own.

"Yeah." She muttered and to her surprise she heard the sound repeated outside the darkness. She was breaking through. She could do this. "Shane, get me out of here. I need to wake up. Please." Though the words didn't make it, the emotion clearly displayed on her face as Shane took her hand in his. The touch caused electricity to rise through her arm like a bolt of lightning.

"Mitch?"

Bright white light shone down on her, blinding her with its contrast to the darkness. As her eyes adjusted she began to make out the outlines of four people gathered around her bed.

"Jason!" She heard Becs yell, allowing her to quickly come to the conclusion that the third band member wasn't in the room. She turned her head slowly to the right, knowing that was where the man who had freed her from the black pit would be. She could still feel his fingers interlocked with hers, giving them a quick squeeze to make sure he knew she was alright. Her eyes opened a little wider as she took in all his features; his newly cropped locks, his eye so full of concern that it almost physically pained her to see them, the slight stubble gracing his chin. She lifted their linked hands, rubbing the back of hers against the rough surface. She liked him with a little bit of hair, he looked older, more mature.

She leant up closer to him, her free hand sliding through his hair and resting on the back of his neck. She stared straight into his eye as her lips slowly connected with his.

"Get a room!" Becs called just to wind them up. They pulled apart and Shane threw her a mild glare.

"You're still here." Mitchie whispered as his attention returned to her.

"Of course I am. I wouldn't leave you Mitch." He smiled at her. He seemed calm, though, as the others would later explain, he had been anything but up until the moment she regained consciousness. They sat there, their hands intertwined, not wanting to be detached from each other, as Mitchie turned back to the others in the room.

"Good to have you back with us." Caitlyn teased, relieved her friend was awake, all signs of her earlier tears fading. She didn't know when the last time was that she had been so scared. Nate didn't know when he'd last lost feeling in his hand so rapidly, as soon as he had joined them at the hospital Caitlyn had grabbed it and hadn't let go all night.

"I wasn't out that long, was I?" Mitchie asked, concerned it had been longer than she thought. She didn't want them to have wasted lots of their time waiting for her.

"Just overnight." Shane explained, noticing the concern on her face. He wanted to keep her calm, worried excess stress may cause a repeat of last night's incident.

The doctor had told them that the most likely cause was that the fight with Steffi had been a major memory jog, that it bore similarity to some event from before the accident that still had a big effect on her.

When he'd been told this Shane had tried to think of all the times he'd been with Mitchie, and all the incidents she'd told him about, to see if anything matched up. Every time he thought about it, one memory would return to his mind. They had just finished performing 'Play My Music' at Beach Jam. Mitchie was congratulating him on the new song when Tess approached them and asked Mitchie about her mother's job. That was when the truth had been revealed. It was a moment that stuck in his memory, not because of what she'd done, but because of how he'd reacted. Nearly a year later he still felt awful about how angry he'd been, how his words had made her cry.

Something else had clicked in Shane's mind as he sat watching Mitchie all night. He thought of the night's when he'd been woken by her screams, caused by her nightmare. He'd known the pattern of phrases she kept saying was familiar but it wasn't until he was sat staring at her unconscious form in the hospital that he realised why.

After the fall out at Beach Jam Shane had tried to avoid Mitchie that was until his dance class with her the next day. She'd seemed so sad, but he was stubborn and had refused to forgive her. After class ended Shane had stormed off, but Mitchie had chased after him, trying to get him to listen to her, to let her explain. The words from her nightmares were the words she'd used to try and get him to give her another chance.

_CR-CR-CR_

"_**I'm sorry." She yelled at him, wishing he would just give her a chance to apologise. But he kept walking, his back remaining to her at all times. Tears were rushing down her cheeks, she felt so lost, not knowing what to do to fix the mess she'd gotten herself into.**_

"_**Please!" He froze, but didn't turn to her. She took a few steps forward, moving closer to him. **_

"_**I don't want to hear it." He muttered and then slowly turned around. She could see the anger in his eyes and it made her move away slightly, scared she would be about to face one of his diva fits. "I don't care what made you do it, you were the only person I trusted and you lied to me. You're pathetic." With that he turned and walked away once more. She rushed after him.**_

"_**I'm so sorry!" She wasn't sure what else to say. "Please, don't go." He could hear the utter sorrow in her voice and though it pained him to be causing that, he kept walking. He couldn't trust her anymore. He couldn't trust anyone. **_

"_**Don't leave." She was practically begging him but he wouldn't listen, he just moved further away. **_

"_**I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry." Each time she said it she moved slower and became quieter, slowly losing hope. She saw his shoulders slump as he trudge further down the path, taking him away from her. She knew she'd been wrong to lie about who she was. She deserved to lose him, but she desperately didn't want to. "Please." He stopped again and this time spun around to look at her with a venomous glare.**_

"_**Just leave me alone Mitchie. You were so desperate for everyone to accept you, yet you couldn't even accept yourself. I don't ever want to see your face ever again. In fact, I don't ever want to speak to you again." Her face fell. She felt totally crushed, her heart breaking, all the tears she had flowing down her cheeks. Shane turned around once more, storming off into the trees, leaving her alone.**_

_CR-CR-CR_

He could still picture her face exactly as it was at the moment. He wished he'd given in then, walked to her and held her in his arms, told her it was okay, that he understood and he forgave her. But he hadn't. He was starting to realise just how much that day had impacted not only his life, but Mitchie's too. He couldn't help but think that the reason Mitchie struggled to remember him was her brain's way of protecting her from the pain he caused.

"Mitch." He whispered, so only she could hear. She turned to him, her smile lighting up her entire face. "I know you don't remember but I have to tell you, I'm sorry for how I treated you at Camp Rock last summer. I was a stupid, selfish jerk and I..." Mitchie lifted her hand, stopping him mid sentence.

"You mean when you ignored me for days because you found out I was lying about who I was?" Mitchie laughed as Shane's eyes grew wide in shock and then scrunched up in confusion.

"You remember?" He wasn't sure whether he could believe it.

"Seems when your brain feels like it's going to erupt out of your head and you faint and remain unconscious all night, your memories come back." She explained with a chuckled. "You didn't do anything wrong last summer. And anyway, that's the past; we've got a whole future to make up for it." She softy stroked his cheek to reassure him that she no longer cared about their argument last year.

"So I guess you're feeling better?" Nate asked, growing uncomfortable watching his two friends, though he was glad to see Mitchie acting more like the girl he had met last summer, and from the look on his friend's face, it was clear Shane was too.

"Yes indeed, though it's weird. It's like there are two people in my brain. One from before the accident and one from after, except a few of the memories are shared by both." Mitchie explained. She was glad to have her memories back, even if they weren't all nice ones, at least she could properly remember the people stood around her bed. "Where are my mom and dad?" She asked.

"They went down to the cafe about an hour ago. We sent Jason to get them when we realised you were waking up, though he probably got distracted by a bird or something." Nate explained. Mitchie couldn't help but notice the faint blush which rose on Becs' cheeks as Jason's name was mentioned, which aroused some suspicions in the recovering girl. "They'll be back any minute, I'm sure." Nate continued, timing his words to perfection as, seconds later, Connie and Steve rushed into the room, Jason trailing a little way behind.

Connie flung her arms around her daughter ecstatically.

"We were so worried about you!" She exclaimed as Mitchie squirmed uncomfortably in her mom's arms. Her feelings towards her mother were conflicted. On one hand she was happy with how her mother had treated her after the accident, with the fact she'd allowed Shane to stay and allowed the others to visit. On the other, she was still angry. Connie's dream job had pulled her away from her life and had lost her friends. Mitchie wasn't sure she was yet ready to forgive her for that. However, noticing the joyful look on her mom's face, she slid her arms around her mom's back, holding her close, deciding it was time.

"Thank you for making us move here mom." She said sincerely, "I don't regret it, I'm glad we've lived over here. I'm sorry for how I acted before." It was the words Connie needed to hear, they made her aware her daughter's memory had returned and she knew she could stop regretting her decision. She wiped the tears which were falling from her eyes, sitting up again to talk to Mitchie.

"I got to live my dream out here Mitchie. Now I want you to go to Camp Rock and fight to make yours come true." She turned her attention to Shane. "And you better take good care of her; I'm trusting you with one of the most important things in my life." Shane promised he would, pleased Connie trusted him. He knew Mitchie deserved the career she dreamed of and he planned to spend the summer doing everything he could to make it come true.

_CR-CR-CR_

"Well it looks like last night's incident was exactly the cure you needed."The doctor stated as he finished up. He'd been in the room for less than ten minutes and yet he was really getting on Mitchie's nerves. "I want to send you to have a scan, just to be on the safe side and then I think you'll be set to go home." That was music to Mitchie's ears. She'd been dreading another stint staring at white walls. As the doctor left, Shane's hopeful face appeared at the door.

"Yes you can come back in." Mitchie said, the look on his face causing her to giggle. He just looked so cute.

"I would but, you see, there's someone else out here who would like to see you, but she's not sure you'll be too happy about it." He explained before stepping aside to reveal a very nervous and guilty looking girl stood behind him.

"Tia?" Mitchie said, surprised she was there after all the happened last night.

"Hey." Tia said, walking in the room as Shane left again.

"Listen, Ti, I am _so_ sorry for what I said yesterday, it wasn't fair of me. You were right, if I'd remembered I wouldn't have been so hurt by what you did."

"Mitch, stop, we were both at fault. I should have just told you after you woke up what was going on, I was stupid. Shane said you remembered everything?" Tia asked as she moved closer, taking a seat beside her friend.

"Yeah, well as far as I'm aware it's everything. I'm glad you were the one to spy on me, God knows what would have happened otherwise." Tia and Mitchie had been friends since before the accident. They'd met on Mitchie's first day, but due to Tia's friendship with Steffi, her friendship with Mitchie had to remain a secret. Turns out that was a good move on their part because when Steffi asked Tia to be her spy, it meant Tia could control the information she gave and could have their friendship out in the open.

"Steffi isn't too happy right now." Tia explained as she realised Mitchie didn't know what had happened after she left. "I sort of had a go at her in front of everyone for lying about you when you couldn't defend yourself and she was pretty mad." Mitchie was shocked Tia would do that for her even after they'd had a fight.

"Ti, you didn't have to do that. What about your dad?" Tia's father worked for Steffi's, that was the main reason why they were friends. As they'd grown up Tia had grown to dislike Steffi, but never dared stand up to her as Steffi would always threaten that if Tia ever turned against her she would make sure her dad was fired instantly. Tia didn't want to be responsible for that.

"He quit the company three days ago, but Steffi didn't know until last night. I told her yesterday I no longer wanted to be friends and she tried to threaten me but I just walked off. It felt great after all these years." A broad smile spread across Tia's face as she remembered she was free from a friendship which had caused her so much sadness. "So, I know I did some bad stuff and I really shouldn't have but, now you understand, do you think we could be friends again?" She asked nervously.

"Ti, do you really think I could survive school next year without you by my side? Of course we can." The girls hugged, relieved their spat was resolved.

"I should probably go, I didn't tell my mom where I was going so she's probably freaking out. Plus I'm sure a certain lover boy isn't too happy he's missing out on time with you." Mitchie chuckled and promised that once she was out of the hospital they'd have a proper girl's night with Caitlyn and Becs so Tia could get to know them better, before letting Tia leave.

There was a knock at the door and a still rather red faced Becs appeared in the room.

"Shane just went to the little boy's room so I thought I'd sneak in. There's something I need to talk to you about." Mitchie had her suspicious about what the topic of this conversation would be. As Becs came to sit beside her, Mitchie glanced out the window only to notice Shane return to the hallway and couldn't help but laugh at the grumpy look he had when he realised Becs had stolen his time.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with a certain bird obsessed band member would it?" Mitchie asked. Becs' cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red, giving Mitchie the answer she expected.

"After we came here last night Jason and I went down to the cafe for a bit, he said he wanted to talk to me in private whilst Shane hogged your room." Becs explained.

"Tell me everything." Mitchie said, intrigued. And that's how she came to discover that the oldest member of Connect 3 had gotten up the courage to ask Becs out over a pot of jell-o and that her friend was officially completely stupid.

"You said you didn't know!" Mitchie exclaimed so loud Becs was sure the others probably heard it.

"Mitch, this sort of thing doesn't happen to me! I'm just a waitress in a small cafe who dreams of being a hairdresser. I'm not the type of girl who gets asked out by a superstar." Becs had spent half the night freaking out about Mitchie being unconscious and the other half stressing out about Jason.

"Yet you're the one girl Jason actually got the courage up to ask out." Mitchie stated. "Listen Becs, life is unpredictable and maybe dating Jason isn't what you ever expected to happen, but isn't it what you've always wished would? That boy is totally head over heels for you even though he's only known you a short while, doesn't that say something?"

"Yeah." Becs said, "It says he doesn't understand his own feelings." She really struggled to believe that out of the millions of girls Jason Green had met, she was the one he wanted to try and be with. "And anyway, he's going away in a few weeks and then I'll probably never see him again. I'm just some holiday romance and I don't want to be that." Mitchie sighed; sometimes her friend was so stubborn.

"Listen to me. Jason isn't like that; he doesn't take risks or make short term commitments. Yesterday I may not have know that but today I remember how well I used to know him, what he had told me about his past. Jason wants to be with you for the long term and he's the type of guy who will work hard to make sure a relationship works out. If you don't give it a chance you'll spend the rest of your life regretting it Becs. Trust me, don't let him slip away." Becs sighed. She knew her friend was right, but she was scared.

"What if it doesn't work?"

"Then it wasn't meant to be. You'll never know unless you try. But what if it does? Then you'd be one of the luckiest girls alive."

"How is it you always know what to say to persuade me." Becs asked, knowing her friend had just made her decision for her.

"I can read you like a book, so I can tell what you need to hear. Now go out there and make that bird loving fool insanely happy." Becs nodded and headed out the door. Mitchie watched as Becs took Jason's hand and whispered something in his ear before leading him away down the corridor.

"So you persuaded her to give him a chance?" She looked back at the door, smiling brightly as she saw Shane standing there. He crossed the room, taking a seat on her bed and wrapping his arms around her.

"They make an adorable couple." She replied as she leaned her head against his chest, taking in his scent.

"Not as adorable as us." Shane replied as he looked down at her. Their lips connected again, this time the kiss was more passionate, more loving than their previous ones.

"Can you not go five minutes without eating each other's faces?" Caitlyn said, interrupting as she and the others wandered back into the room.

"Can you not go five minutes without interrupting?" Shane retaliated. Everyone gathered together around Mitchie bed, much to Shane's annoyance.

"We wouldn't have it any other way." Nate responded. The door opened, revealing a much happier looking Jason and Becs who walked in hand in hand. Clearly it hadn't taken long for Becs to persuade Jason to repeat his offer. As they joined the others around her bed, Mitchie looked around at them. It was then that she realised just how lucky she was. She may have lost her memory for four months, but when she got it back, it came with some of the best people in the world.

**AN: The End. **

**Sorry it was a long chapter, but I just couldn't cut anything out. I really hoped you enjoyed this final chapter and I hope it gave the resolution you were hoping for.**

**A few of you have asked about a sequel. I may do this but it depends on a few things: Firstly, I need to know there is enough demand to make it worthwhile. I'm going to be very busy over the next ten weeks and so I may not have much time to write it. I also won't write it unless I come up with an idea which I think is good enough to continue the story with. I will let you know my decision when I get the chance.**

**Finally I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who made the effort to read this story and made it reach over 12,000 hits! To those of you who added this story to your alerts, you guys are great; you made me feel more confident about the fact people were interested in this story. To everyone who added this story to their favourites, or me to their favourite author list, you guys are fantastic! You have made me feel so incredible about my writing ability, I would never have guessed so many of you would like the story so much.**

**And a special thanks goes to everyone who took the time to review. You put a smile on my face every time I check my emails. To read what you all thought, to be able to see all your predictions for what was going to happen and to see just how much people were getting into this story, it was incredible and made these last few months so amazing. I could never have dreamed that this story would receive more than 200 reviews. Thank you so much. **

**If you could leave one last review so I can know whether you liked the ending, I would be seriously grateful. You guys are brilliant. I will try to keep writing for you. One final time: Thank you.**


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